Sophia Gaston is a nonresident senior fellow in Strategic Foresight at GMF, where she specializes in the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific security theaters. Her research focuses on strengthening the resilience and competitiveness of advanced liberal democracies in a turbulent geopolitical era, with a particular focus on British strategic advantage. 

Gaston advises the British government as an external challenge partner and policy expert, and trains civil servants on geopolitical capabilities. She is a senior research fellow in the Centre for Statecraft and National Security in the Department of War Studies at King's College London and a senior advisor to the Defense and National Security Practice at the Asia Group in Washington, DC. In addition, she holds affiliations as a senior fellow in the Changing Character of War Programme at the University of Oxford, an expert associate at the National Security College at the Australian National University in Canberra, and an academic fellow at the European Policy Centre in Brussels. 

Gaston is a regular media commentator for national and global publications and broadcast television, and frequently presents on her research at international conferences. She also advises the UK government and private-sector organizations on geopolitical risk, strategic forecasting, and policy development.

George Riddell is the managing director at Goyder Ltd. A leading expert in international trade policy, he has extensive experience advising businesses, governments, and organizations on how to navigate global trade complexities. Previously, Riddell was director of trade strategy at EY LLP, providing strategic guidance on impacts of trade negotiations, supply chain resilience, and sustainability measures to clients. Prior to that, he served as senior trade attaché with the UK Foreign Office in Geneva, representing the United Kingdom at the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the UN. He also served as a special advisor to the Kenyan government during the WTO’s Tenth Ministerial Conference. With a deep understanding of geopolitical risks and trade policy dynamics, Riddell supports clients in developing strategies to mitigate risks and seize global market opportunities. He holds a master’s degree in international relations from Durham University.

September 19, 2025

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