We are delighted to announce the launch of The Angevin Talks at Queens’ hosted by Anna El-Erian. The Angevin Talks, beginning mid-February 2021, will host a diverse range of eminent speakers, appearing in an informal setting. All members of the Queens’ community will be invited to join the talks.

Keep an eye on this webpage and follow the Queens’ MCR social media (Instagram and Facebook) for all the latest updates and announcements.

The Angevin Talks will return in Michaelmas 2021!

Behind the Logo

James Smith and Sneha Baptista, two current MCR members completing their MSt Architecture, kindly designed the logo for the Angevin Talks. Here is what they each said about the thought process behind and significance of the logo’s design.

“With the aim to create something quintessential to Queens’ College, we took inspiration from the President’s Lodge - the setting for the Angevin Talks. The result is a culturally rich and adaptable logo embodying the architectural language of the lodge with its unique and historic facade and cloisters that have welcomed many great speakers to the University. The logo provides a strong identity for the speaker series hosted by Anna El-Erian.” - Sneha Baptista

"We worked together to create a logo that encompassed the unique architecture of Queens’ College’s President’s Lodge, as the only extant half-timbered building in any Cambridge College. Conveying the beauty at the heart of Queens’ that has become the forum to host this series of exciting and insightful talks.”- James Smith

Previous Speakers

Jared Cohen (12.05.21):

The final Angevin Talk of the series took place on Wedneaday 12th March, Anna El-Erian hosted Jared Cohen for a fireside chat, followed by questions.

Jared Cohen is the founder and CEO of Jigsaw, which is the research and engineering arm of Google. He also serves as a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. Previously, he was Google’s first Director of Ideas and chief advisor to Google's CEO and Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt. From 2006 to 2010 he served as a member of the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff and as a close advisor to both Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton.

The recording of the talk is available here.

Ian Bremmer (28.04.21):

Our fourth Angevin Talk took place on Thursday 14th March, Anna El-Erian hosted Ian Bremmer for a fireside chat, followed by questions.

Ian Bremmer is a political scientist who helps business leaders, policy makers, and the general public make sense of the world around them. He is president and founder of Eurasia Group, the world’s leading political risk research and consulting firm, and GZERO Media, a company dedicated to providing intelligent and engaging coverage of international affairs. Ian is an independent voice on critical issues around the globe, offering clearheaded insights through speeches, written commentary, and even satirical puppets (really!).

A recording of the talk is available on YouTube.

Rt Honerable David Milliband (14.04.21):

Our third Angevin Talk took place on Thursday 14th March, time is TBC (19/20 GMT is expected). Anna El-Erian will host David Miliband for a fireside chat followed by an audience Q and A.

David Miliband is the President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee. He oversees the agency’s relief and development operations in over 30 countries, its refugee resettlement and assistance programs throughout the United States and the IRC’s advocacy efforts in Washington and other capitals on behalf of the world’s most vulnerable people.

David has had a distinguished political career in the United Kingdom. From 2007 to 2010, he served as the youngest Foreign Secretary in three decades, driving advancements in human rights and representing the United Kingdom throughout the world. In 2016 David was named one of the World’s Greatest Leaders by Fortune Magazine and in 2018 he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

A recording of the talk is available on YouTube.

Professor Michael Spence (18.03.21):

Our second Angevin Talk took place on Thursday 18th March, at 20:00 GMT, Anna El-Erian hosted Professor Michael Spence for a fireside chat, followed by questions. Professor Michael Spence earned his Ph.D. in Economics at Harvard. He was awarded the John Kenneth Galbraith Prize for excellence in teaching and the John Bates Clark Medal for a "significant contribution to economic thought and knowledge." In 2001, Professor Michael Spence received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his work in the field of information economics. Spence currently holds many prestigious positions. A recording of the talk is available on YouTube.

Dr Dambisa Moyo (17.02.21):

Our inaugral talk took place on the 17th February 2021 with Dr Dambisa Moyo. Dr. Moyo is a pre-eminent thinker, who influences key decision-makers in strategic investment and public policy. She is a top-tier opinion former and trusted advisor on Macroeconomics, Geopolitics and Technology themes. Dr Moyo is a co-principal of Versaca Investment, a family office focussed on growth investing globally. She serves on a number of global corporate boards including: 3M Corporation, Chevron and Conde Nast. Dr Moyo worked at the World Bank and Goldman Sachs for nearly a decade. She is the author of four New York Times bestselling books, most recently, “Edge of Chaos: Why Democracy Is Failing to Deliver Economic Growth – and How to Fix It,”(2018).Dr. Moyo's newest book, "How Boards Work - And How They Can Work Better in a Chaotic World" is scheduled to be published in Spring of 2021. Watch a recording of the talk here on our youtube channel.