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Lee Cain

Keynote speaker

Lee Cain is the former Director of Communications at 10 Downing Street and political strategist to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

An expert in politics, communications and crisis management, Lee is an engaging and candid speaker in his role at the heart of the British Government. Lee navigated one of the most turbulent political periods in modern UK history from the EU referendum in 2016 to the UK’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

As a key campaign strategist, he urged the country to “Take Back Control” and “Get Brexit Done” – helping the Conservative Government win the largest election majority since Margaret Thatcher.  He is also credited with developing the “Stay Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives” messaging for the Government’s Covid-19 response.

A journalist by training,​ Lee has advised many of the UK’s leading politicians including Theresa May, Michael Gove and Andrea Leadsom.

Sergei Guriev

Keynote speaker

Sergey Guriyev is a Russian economist, who is provost and a professor of economics at the Institut d'études politiques in Paris (Sciences Po).

From 2016 to 2019, he was the chief economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. He was a Morgan Stanley Professor of Economics and a rector at Moscow's New Economic School (NES) until he resigned on 30 April 2013 and fled to France.

In January 2024, he was announced as the incoming Dean of London Business School, succeeding François Ortalo-Magné. An expert in corporate governance and political economy, Sergei is the author of the award-winning book Spin Dictators: the Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21^st Century (2023).

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Musheir El Farra

Musheir El Farra is an author, human rights activist, civil engineer, film director and chair of the ��«Ӱҵ Palestinian Solidarity Campaign.

Originally from Gaza, he has campaigned tirelessly throughout his life for the rights and dignity of Palestinian people living under occupation.

Musheir is the author of Gaza: When the Sky Rained White Fire (2012) and director of the recent documentary Shooting the Messenger (2022), which documents the killing and intimidation of Palestinian journalists, at least 88 of whom have been killed during the recent fighting.  

Evgeny Feldman

Evgeny Feldman is a Russian photojournalist and photo editor based in Riga, Latvia.

He has freelanced for different independent outlets in Russia as well as major media from abroad and work on personal projects. Evgeny has covered protests in Moscow, trials of the opposition leaders and activists, revolution attempts in Belarus, alongside terrorist attacks in Paris and Orlando.

In 2017, he was personally invited by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to document his campaign against Vladimir Putin. Evgeny’s talk will cover his experience of covering Navalny’s campaign and the challenges faced by Russia’s opposition to Putin’s rule.

Barney Guiton and Disaster Emergency Committee

Barney Guiton is Media and Communications Manager at the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC).

He has a BA in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from the University of Manchester and went into journalism through the start-up Planet Ivy, becoming Head of Content before joining Newsweek Europe as News Editor. After founding a free magazine business, Swipe, Barney joined the DEC as Content Manager and has worked in a variety of roles in the communications team over the last six years.

This has included leading on media and messaging for the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal – one of the biggest in the DEC’s 60-year history – as well as appeals for Afghanistan, Pakistan, the coronavirus pandemic and the earthquake affecting Turkey and Syria.

Dr Keisha Bruce

Dr Keisha Bruce is a creative researcher and educator of media, technology, culture, and the immersive spaces in between.

Throughout their career, they have worked on a range of innovative projects that engage and extend their interests of the intersection between Black arts and culture, and media and technology. In particular, Keisha is interested in Black women's digital diasporic intimacies, weaving a story of memory, speculation, and diasporic visual cultures as they emerge within Instagram archives.

Outside of their work, Keisha is a world-builder, gamer, and creative writer, dreaming up an afro-fantasy world filled with gods, magic, and technological innovation.

Communication Laboratory

Communication Laboratory is an independent Croatian agency for integrated communications founded in 2004.

The agency's expertise is in the field of public relations, event management and digital marketing. Partnered with the German agency, Conducttr, they provide immersive crisis communication management services and is the exclusive partner for conducting Crisis Simulation program for the region. Their simulations utilise a range of online tools to and aim to train people in the resolution of crises, reputation management, and the management of internal publics.

The crisis simulation will be led by Renata Krajačić, a communication expert who has over 18 years of experience in corporate communications and PR agencies. Through her career she worked on product launches, rebranding, internal communication projects and different CSR projects. Since 2018, she is mainly focused on communication strategies, crisis communication and futures thinking concept through different projects.

Screening: While We Watched (2023)

Directed by Vijay Shukla

Focusing on one of India’s leading news journalists, NDTV’s Ravish Kumar, While We Watched depicts a changing media landscape, where resources and funds are depleted, colleagues have left for better-paid jobs and ratings continue to dip.

Amidst all this, Kumar also has to deal with personal threats, hate emails, the decimation of ethics through competition with other channels, and a rise in nationalism that is radically transforming political, social and cultural life.

Shukla presents this story like a thriller, capturing with urgency the threat that these changes pose. As Kumar continues to fight for a fair and balanced news media, While We Watched reflects an unsettling trend sweeping across the world.