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Bekki Field

Senior Associate Fellow

Bekki is the Principal Programme Advisor at The Elders, leading policy development and programme delivery on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

She was previously Head of Pandemic Preparedness at the UK’s Department for Health and Social Care and Global Policy Lead at Cancer Research UK, the world’s largest independent cancer research charity. She spent a decade in the UK diplomatic service, where she was posted to the UK’s Representation to the European Union and the UK Delegation to the Organisation for Security and Cooperation (OSCE). Bekki represented the UK government at a series of multilateral conferences, including the 2010 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, IAEA General Assemblies (2010-2012) and OSCE Ministerial Councils (2014-2017).

Bekki’s policy interests include existential threats, arms control, global health security and gender equality. At Cancer Research UK, Bekki authored articles for the global development platform DevEx and the journal Cancer Control, and she frequently blogged on foreign policy issues whilst she was a diplomat.

Bekki holds a degree in history and politics from the University of York.

Content by Bekki Field

Commentary

Ok, Doomer! The NEVER podcast – Biological threats: Going viral

Listen to the fourth episode of the NEVER podcast – Ok, Doomer! In this episode, we explore biological existential and global catastrophic risks. Featuring an introduction to the topic and an exploration of some of the technological mitigation techniques we have available for biological risks, a panel discussion exploring the current state of the international governance of biological risks, and we will also delve into whether humanity’s recent brush with COVID-19 has better or worse prepared us for future pandemics, be they man-made or natural.