Dr Filip Scherf

Filip J. Scherf is a researcher, published author, and policy analyst and advisor focusing on Russia and European security, with extensive international experience in the U.S., the UK, Brussels, Russia, and the Czech Republic. He is currently a policy advisor on Russia and European security. He also serves as a Teaching Fellow at the University of Oxford’s Europaeum Institute, lectures on political risk and Russia at Charles University, and is affiliated as an Executive Fellow with the Geneva Centre for Security Policy and as a Research Associate with the Cambridge Margaret Beaufort Institute.
Formerly, Filip was a regional correspondent for the Economist Intelligence Unit and a political risk consultant in Russia. His other academic and professional experience includes Columbia University’s Harriman Institute for Eurasian Studies in New York, the RAND Corporation in Cambridge (UK), Eurasia Group in London, and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Brussels.
Filip holds a PhD in ethics and international affairs from the University of St Andrews, a master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), and a Master of Letters degree from the University of St Andrews in Scotland, where he was placed on the Dean's List for academic excellence. For his research, Columbia University awarded Filip the Dasturdaza Dr. Jal Pavry Memorial Award for International Peace and Understanding. He was also a Harriman Junior Fellow, a member of the International Fellows Program, and a recipient of the Robert Legvold Fellowship.
Filip’s book, "A Lost Land: The Story of Modern Russia," was published in Czech in 2024 and was longlisted for the national Book of the Year Award (Magnesia Litera). He has also published articles and essays in print and online media in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. He serves on Columbia University's Global Engagement Committee.