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Between 2010 and 2019, I wrote my PhD thesis on Geopolitics at Royal Holloway. Before, I had obtained a Master's degree in Economics and worked as a (Senior) Country Risk Analyst with three banks. My pre-PhD career further included a position as a Senior Policy Adviser at the Dutch Ministry of Finance. While working as an economist, I became increasingly interested in geopolitics. This was partially related to my work as an economist, during which I became more and more aware of the strong relationship between economics and geopolitics. My interest in geopolitics was further stimulated by various books, particularly "Political Geography" by Peter J. Taylor. Eventually, I decided to take a sabbatical in 2009 to do a Master's in Geopolitics at King's College London.
My PhD thesis "Germany's ‘War on Terror' : Exploring Frames and Imaginations in Practical and Popular Geopolitics" investigates the framing of Germany's military presence in Afghanistan. More specifically, the thesis analyses how the news magazine Der Spiegel and five political parties framed four aspects of Germany's ISAF mission (2002-2014). These aspects are Will to Intervene, Militarisation of Intervention, Capacity to Intervene and Victims during Intervention. These so-called geopolitical frame categories draw on the academic literature on geopolitics, geography, IR, political studies and Germany. My methodology to identify, interpret and analyse geopolitical frames reflects a strong interest in both critical geopolitics and media studies. It combines geopolitical concepts such as national identity, national power and national security with constructivist and multimodal methods to study framing.
In 2012, the Geographical Journal published my article "Polar Partners or Poles Apart? On the discourses of two US think tanks on Russia's presence in the ‘High North’." The article examines the differences between Brookings Institution and Heritage Foundation regarding their representations of the Arctic, with a focus on Russia's regional involvement. I also wrote the article about Geopolitics in the Oxford Bibliographies. It contains reviews of over 150 publications in English, French, German and Dutch. Moreover, I am Founding Editor of Exploring Geopolitics. This website hosts 200+ contributions by 130+ scholars from 25+ countries. These scholars offer valuable insights into geopolitical approaches, geopolitical concepts and geopolitical trends. My article "The Definition of Geopolitics – The Classical, French and Critical Traditions" has been among the most read contributions since I started the website in 2009.
With my company GeoMeans, I assist organisations with making better informed decisions on their country, regional and global strategy. To achieve this, I develop tools (‘means’) that enable my clients to assess the strategic implications of major trends in one or more countries ('geo'). These tools help organisations work with frames, indicators and scenarios more effectively. Skills training sessions, workshops and consultancy are the most common forms in which I assist my clients (see below for examples). I further work as a course leader at Maastricht Summer School. My geopolitical courses are about geopolitical scenario planning, the twenty-first century world order and water wars. I further offer Summer School courses on media framing analysis, critical discourse analysis, fake news, country risk analysis and political risk analysis. I also teach at other universities, including Cambridge University, Helmut-Schmidt University (Hamburg) and University of Amsterdam (see below for more examples).
If you have any questions about geopolitics, framing or country risk, please contact me via e-mail or LinkedIn.
Cambridge University - Guest Lecturer
Geneva Institute for Geopolitical Studies - Guest Lecturer
Helmut Schmidt-Universität - Guest Lecturer and Workshop Moderator
Maastricht Summer School - Course Leader
Maastricht University - Guest Lecturer, Tutor and Workshop Moderator
Nyenrode University - Guest Lecturer
Royal Holloway, University of London - Workshop Moderator
University of Amsterdam - Guest Lecturer, Thesis Supervisor and Tutor
ABN AMRO Bank - Speaker and Moderator
Amsterdam University Press - Speaker and Panel Member
Bundeswehr - Panel Chair, Speaker and Workshop Moderator
Bundeswehr - Author
D66 - Speaker and Moderator
Erasmus University Rotterdam - Speaker and Moderator
FMO Bank - Workshop Moderator
King's College London - Speaker and Moderator
Ministry of Defence UK - Panel Member
Ministry of Foreign Affairs NL/International Union for Conservation of Nature - Speaker and Panel Member
NATO - Facilitator
Netherlands Council for Trade Promotion - Speaker and Moderator
NIBE-SVV - Author
Rabobank International London - Workshop Moderator
Rabobank Nederland - Speaker
Study Association for European Studies/University of Amsterdam - Author
Warwick University - Panel Member
Wolters Kluwer - Author
Young Energy Specialists - Workshop Moderator
King's College London
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Entry for encyclopedia/dictionary
Research output: Thesis › Doctoral Thesis
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution
ID: 374161