Report by BEARR Trustee Sam Thorne Lecture title: “Is it all over for the rules-based international order?” Speakers: Dr Bobo Lo and Kadri Liik Moderated by Sir Roderic Lyne The BEARR Trust Autumn Lecture 2025 featured an hour of stimulating discussion between international relations expert Dr Bobo Lo and journalist and political analyst Kadri Liik, …

On 25 September Janet Gunn, BEARR trustee, attended a conference in London that brought together Ukrainian and British people working to support Ukrainian society during the war and Ukrainians now living in the UK as a consequence of it. Stalls advertised the work that many NGOs and groups were engaged in. The morning was devoted …

The Trustees of the BEARR Trust are delighted to invite you to our Annual Conference which will take place on Friday, 14 November 2025. The theme will be: “Solidarity and stamina: how civil society builds and sustains resilience.” The conference will examine resilience and what it entails at individual, community and organisational levels. Grassroots, frontline …

The BEARR Trust 2025 Annual Lecture, generously hosted by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) at their headquarters in Canary Wharf, took place on Tuesday, 14 October 2025. The event took the form of a discussion between Bobo Lo, international relations expert and author, and Kadri Liik, journalist and political analyst, on the …

Report by BEARR Trustee Sam Thorne – 24 May 2025 Talk topic: Life in Spite of Everything: Tales from the Ukrainian East Speaker: Professor Victoria Donovan In conversation with: Ross Gill, BEARR Chair The BEARR Trust marked the launch of the new Ukraine Community Resilience Fund with a special online event on 8 May with …

On Thursday 8 May, we marked the launch of the new Ukraine Community Resilience Fund with a special online event, featuring Professor Victoria Donovan, Professor of Ukrainian and East European Studies at the University of St Andrews and author of Life in Spite of Everything: Tales from the Ukrainian East. In this conversation, Victoria reflected …

The BEARR Trust organised a talk and discussion with Dr Armen Sarkissian, former president of Armenia (2018-2022), who presented his book The Small States Club: How Small Smart Powers Can Save the World and discussed the current political situation in Armenia. With relations between Armenia and neighbouring Azerbaijan deteriorating, this was an important and timely opportunity to hear …