Josie Appleton is convenor of the Manifesto Club. She wrote the Manifesto Club reports, The Case Against Vetting How the Child Protection Industry Stole Christmas, and Hobby Clubs. She is a journalist and writer based in London. She writes regularly for Spiked and has contributed to a number of publications, including the Spectator, The Times, Times Literary Supplement and Daily Express.

Articles: Rules, Regulations and Freedom in Europe

Francis Bacon is a former researcher at Lemos&Crane, now working at the Royal Society.

Articles: Wishing trees in China

Paul is co-founding partner and manages quality assurance at Lemos&Crane. He is the author of two civil rights handbooks, a Cambridge University law graduate and a solicitor. Paul has worked in general and legal book publishing both as a commissioning editor and publisher. Prior to initiating web development 10 years ago, he published over 50 books and reports at Lemos&Crane. Paul's voluntary board experience includes acting as governor-trustee for an international college between 2005 and 2010.

Dr Ali Fisher is director of Mappa Mundi Consulting and a researcher in the fields of cultural relations, public diplomacy and information operations. Ali has previously worked as Director of Counterpoint, the cultural relations think-tank of the British Council (2006–7), and as Lecturer in International Relations at the University of Exeter. He writes the blog Wandren PD. Currently Ali is working on two books. A historical study of influence operations, Changing the Odds: Influencing European images of America through American Studies and an edited collection Trials of Engagement: The Future of Public Diplomacy with Prof. Scott Lucas. In his work as a consultant Ali has developed The Stepping Stones; Engaging Meaningful Networks for organisations seeking to build or engage networks. This is based on insights gained from his work in Network Analysis.

Articles: 'Open-Source' Public Diplomacy | Entering the network phase in Public Diplomacy

Andy Friend is currently a Non-Executive Director of Partnerships UK and Financial Security Assurance (UK) Ltd and an adviser to private sector companies investing in infrastructure both in the EU and globally. Until 2006 he was the Chief Executive of John Laing plc where he led the process of repositioning the former construction, property and homes company as a major listed infrastructure investor. Andy Friend is a member of the Council of Trustees of Oxfam.

Articles: Why is an infrastructure asset class for investors important for UK public services and pensioners?

As a playwright, Mike van Graan has won many awards for his work including most recently Best New South African Play award for 2009 at the Fleur du Cap Theatre Awards for Die Generaal and in 2003, Green Man Flashing won the Jury Award for Best Script at the PANSA/UCT Drama School Festival of Reading of New Writing. In April 2009, two of Van Graan’s new works starting rehearsals: in Cape Town, Mandla Mbothwe began directing Lungi Pinda in Bafana Republic 3: Penalty Shootout and in Johannesburg, Greg Homann initiated rehearsals with the five-person cast of Brothers in Blood that will open at the Market Theatre. Iago's Last Dance, van Graan’s trilogy of playlets inspired by the HIV/AIDS genocide of neglect and denialism, will premiere on the Main Programme at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown in July 2009. Bafana Republic 2: Extra Time will be performed at the Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA) at the end of April 2009.

Articles: South Africa: Expression under Repression

Tim de Vere Green began filmmaking in 2005, after an earlier career in business and finance. Tim’s film on the site, Poverty Ladder takes us inside the worlds of three characters whose lives were changed forever through the involvement of a ground-breaking Kenyan microfinance organisation, Jamii Bora. Tim’s film was produced as part of his recent MA in Screen Documentary at Goldsmiths University in London.

Articles: Poverty Ladder in Kenya

Bas Heijne is a Dutch journalist, broadcaster, writer and translator. He is a columnist for the newspaper NRC Handelsblad. Bas Heijne’s writing include the novels Last Words and Suez and the play, Van Gogh. His translations include the works of Evelyn Waugh, E.M. Forster and Joseph Conrad. In 2005 he won the triennial Henriette Roland Holst Award for his collection of essays Hollandse toestanden (The State of the Netherlands)

Articles: Multiple identities and hybrid societies

Simon Kirby is producer, director and founder of SKA Culture (www.skaculture.com) an independent Shanghai-based creative producing unit that works with both Chinese and overseas artists and arts organisations on a wide range of arts and cultural projects.

Articles: Written on the body in China | Oil and water in China

Simon Kuper joined the Financial Times in 1994, not as a sportswriter. He ended up writing the daily currencies column and was driven out by tedium in 1998. He returned in 2002 as a sports columnist and has been there ever since, occasionally allowed out of his sports box to write about books, the Netherlands or other subjects.

Articles: How to improve journalism by a journalist

Gerard Lemos is a partner at social researchers Lemos&Crane where he leads the research team. He is the author of numerous books and reports about social policy, including The Communities We Have Lost and Can Regain (with Michael Young). He is currently writing a book about social welfare in China.

Articles: From Indira to Mayawati: women in Indian politics | Art without boundaries: the Venice Biennale | A hope of home: Akram Khan's bahok in Beijing

Elena started her career in the Russian Academy of Education where was involved with the introduction of early foreign language education in primary schools. In 1997 she moved to the British Council and became assistant director for education and ELT and created a network of British-Russian partnership centres across Russia. In 2008 she was awarded an OBE. In 2008 Elena became Head of Development Unit at the Moscow School of Socio-Economic Studies where she has been involved in setting up a Russian Federation of Teachers, supporting migrant children and developing multi-cultural schools in North Caucasus.

Articles: Education: failing dismally?

The filmmaker Mauro Lombardi is a journalist with a long career in the audiovisual world, including news reporting and working on 'Informe Especial', Chile's TV influential news magazine programme. 'Boomchucka' was made as part of his Screen Documentary Master's Degree at Goldsmiths College, University of London.

Articles: 'Boomchucka': the circus that travelled Israel, Palestine and Egypt

Dr Tony Munton is a Chartered Psychologist with more than 20 years experience in undertaking policy research for central and local government. Following a period on secondment with the Department for Education and Skills, Tony worked at the Home Office and then the Ministry of Justice as an Assistant Director in the Research, Development and Statistics Division. He has authored or co-authored over 50 journal articles and books. Tony joined the Matrix Knowledge Group in October 2008 as Director of Matrix Evidence.

Articles: International comparisons: how can we learn lessons from social policy solutions in other countries?

Njabulo Ndebele is an academic and author and the former Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Cape Town. His most recent novel The Cry of Winnie Mandela was published to critical acclaim.

Articles: Bridges or Dynamite? The arts as vehicles of intercultural dialogue

Head of Gaming Group at Gameland, CEO at TEMA Media Holding (mobile mass media), Manager at BrandStorm Strategic Marketing (BBDO Group), Project Manager at Cafemax (chain of internet cafes), Head of Gaming Group at Gameland, CEO at TEMA Media Holding, Manager at BrandStorm Strategic Marketing (BBDO Group), Project Manager at Cafemax (chain of internet cafes)

Articles: Media shaping young people's identities in Russia

Tim is an independent writer and researcher on China. He is based in Hong Kong, where he is also completing a PhD in Chinese Studies. In his previous diplomatic career Tim was British Consul-General in Chongqing, southwest China, from 2004 to 2007, and worked in Hong Kong, the Cabinet Office and the Foreign Office. His main interests are Chinese politics and society.

Articles: How China thinks about 'the west'

Farid Tabarki is the founder of Coolpolitics Research. He’s currently launching the experimental direct access study ‘in search of: the heart and mind of Europe’s twentysomethings’ that will document the driving forces, motives, and values that are in the heart and mind of ordinary Europeans born between 1977-1987. It searches for the core that explains their behaviour and attitudes. What are they thinking and feeling and in what ways can their attitudes towards their private and professional life be explained? Not only the unity of this generation is being explored, the differences between members of this generation will be explored as well. By identifying core domains, which have or lack unity, a foundation is laid on which trend watchers, marketers and politicians can build their forecasts of future trends and behaviour patters of this age group.

Articles: Europe's new 'prosumers': what 20 somethings want

Besnik Tahiri is co-director of the Kosovo Local Government Institute. Between 2004 and 2007 he was political adviser to the Prime Minister of the Government of Kosovo on decentralisation and local government during which time he managed a year-long government-led project on the Roadmap to Effective Decentralisation in Kosovo. Besnik has also worked with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Articles: Kosovo: what’s the price of independence? | Implementing Decentralisation in Kosovo: 1 Year On

Willemijn Verkoren is assistant professor at the Centre for International Conflict Analysis and Management (CICAM) at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands. In her research, teaching and advisory work she focuses on issues relating to conflict, peace-building and civil society. Her publications include the books Post-conflict Development: Meeting New Challenges (2005, with Gerd Junne (eds.)) and The Owl and the Dove: Knowledge Strategies to Improve the Peacebuilding Work of Local Non-Governmental Organisations (2009).

Articles: Cambodia: society building v. NGO-isation

Yvonne Zonderop has been working as a journalist for over 30 years in The Netherlands. Her specialities have been politics, economics, culture and society. She was deputy editor-in-chief of de Volkskrant, the largest Dutch quality newspaper. She also headed its weekly op ed section. Yvonne now works as an independent journalist, moderator and producer. She produced interactive, multi-media debates on social issues, citizenship and public space.

Articles: Fraternity and Meritocracy: can the Netherlands have both?