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Associate Fellows

Our work is strengthened by a network of highly respected advisors and experts who bring decades of experience in governance, peacebuilding, and democratic transitions. Their insights and technical guidance help us design and deliver impactful initiatives tailored to local contexts.

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed
Leader of Liberal Democrats, House of Lords

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician who made his mark early—as the youngest constituency MSP when elected to represent Tweeddale, Ettrick & Lauderdale from 2003 to 2011. In August 2013, he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Purvis of Tweed and has held key roles since, including Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, International Development, and International Trade, ultimately becoming Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords in July 2025 

He is best known for piloting the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015through the Lords, legally binding the UK to commit 0.7 % of its GNI to overseas. Jeremy also brings extensive experience as a facilitator and governance adviser in conflict and post-conflict regions, particularly across the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia .

Meredith Preston McGhie
Secretary General, Global Centre for Pluralism

Meredith Preston McGhie

Meredith Preston McGhie is the Secretary General of the Global Centre for Pluralism, where she leads efforts to advance pluralism as a global ethic and practical approach to managing diversity. She assumed the role in October 2019 after more than two decades of frontline peacebuilding and mediation in some of the world’s most complex conflicts. Her work has spanned Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, including leadership as Africa Regional Director for the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, where she facilitated dialogue and supported peace processes in Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, and Mozambique. She also advised the Kenyan National Dialogue and Reconciliation process following the 2007–08 election violence under the mediation of Kofi Annan, and played key roles in the Djibouti Peace Process for Somalia, the CPA in Sudan, and other high-stakes negotiations.
Her early career included working with Indigenous and minority communities in Northeast India and along the Thai-Myanmar border, as well as with UN missions in Kosovo and Northern Iraq. Her work has spanned a range of issues, including electoral conflict, disarmament and demobilisation, and inclusion. She contributes to policy discussions on peacemaking globally, including teaching peace process design and as a dialogue facilitator and public speaker. Throughout her career, McGhie has emphasized pluralism not only as recognition of diversity but as an ethic that transforms governance, justice, education, and culture—helping societies turn diversity into a source of strength.

Bela Kapur
Visiting Senior Fellow, LSE Centre for Women, Peace and Security

Bela Kapur

Bela Kapur is an international lawyer and policy expert with over two decades of experience working at the intersection of human rights, peacebuilding, and women’s participation in political processes. A solicitor in England and Wales and an attorney in New York, she has held senior roles within the United Nations, including advising the Special Envoy for Syria, serving as interim Women’s Empowerment Adviser in Libya, and leading the Secretariat of the Secretary-General’s High-Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations. She played a pivotal role in establishing Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission and convened protection mechanisms in Iraq to strengthen accountability under international humanitarian law.

Today, Bela is a Visiting Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics’ Centre for Women, Peace and Security, where her work focuses on feminist leadership, inclusion, and supporting women’s civil society groups in conflict-affected contexts such as Ukraine, Libya, Syria, and Yemen. She has also taught at Georgetown University Law Center as the Robert Drinan S.J. Visiting Professor. Through research, advocacy, and partnerships with global and local women’s organizations, Bela continues to champion gender equality and inclusive peace, bringing a distinctive blend of legal expertise, multilateral diplomacy, and a commitment to amplifying the voices of women leaders worldwide.

Tom Aston
International MEL Specialist

Tom Aston

Tom Aston is an international Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) specialist with over 15 years of experience working across Latin America, Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. His expertise lies in political economy analysis, accountability, and participatory and theory-based evaluation methods, with a strong track record of supporting governance, transparency, and social accountability initiatives. He has advised major development organisations, including serving as a Governance Advisor at CARE International, a Learning Advisor with the Learning, Evidence and Advocacy Partnership (LEAP), and currently as an MEL Advisor with the Governance Action Hub at Results for Development.

He holds a PhD in Development Planning from University College London (UCL), where his doctoral research focused on the political economy of social protection in Bolivia. Alongside his consultancy work, Tom is a thought leader in the MEL field, contributing to academic and practitioner debates through blogs, publications, and advisory roles, including serving on the editorial advisory board of the journal Evaluation and as an Honorary Associate at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS). His work consistently bridges rigorous analysis with practical approaches to strengthen learning and adaptation in complex governance and development contexts.

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed
Leader of Liberal Democrats, House of Lords

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician who made his mark early—as the youngest constituency MSP when elected to represent Tweeddale, Ettrick & Lauderdale from 2003 to 2011. In August 2013, he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Purvis of Tweed and has held key roles since, including Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, International Development, and International Trade, ultimately becoming Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords in July 2025 

He is best known for piloting the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015through the Lords, legally binding the UK to commit 0.7 % of its GNI to overseas. Jeremy also brings extensive experience as a facilitator and governance adviser in conflict and post-conflict regions, particularly across the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia .

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed
Leader of Liberal Democrats, House of Lords

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed

Lord Jeremy Purvis of Tweed is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician who made his mark early—as the youngest constituency MSP when elected to represent Tweeddale, Ettrick & Lauderdale from 2003 to 2011. In August 2013, he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Purvis of Tweed and has held key roles since, including Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, International Development, and International Trade, ultimately becoming Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords in July 2025 

He is best known for piloting the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015through the Lords, legally binding the UK to commit 0.7 % of its GNI to overseas. Jeremy also brings extensive experience as a facilitator and governance adviser in conflict and post-conflict regions, particularly across the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia .