Dr Francesca Grandi

Dr Francesca Grandi is an Executive-in-Residence within the Global Fellowship Initiative of the GCSP. She is Head of Transparency International Defence and Security, where she leads efforts to advance the governance and integrity of the European defence sector and to integrate anti-corruption into the international peace and security agenda.

She has extensive expertise in multilateral diplomacy, policy, and strategy planning, as well as in conducting, managing, and disseminating research, and translating analytical insights and technical findings into policies and programming at the peace-development-humanitarian nexus.

Her 20+ year career spans roles in international organisations, academia, think tanks, and NGOs, focusing on conflict analysis and resolution and the protection and assistance of victims of armed violence, including the forcibly displaced. She is currently serving on the board of Mercy Hands Europe, a Geneva-based, women-led organisation dedicated to providing humanitarian aid and supporting development initiatives across Iraq, Syria, Ethiopia, and beyond.

Francesca taught Risk and Foresight at the IE School of Global and Public Affairs; various international security courses at Yale University; and was a Senior Visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London (2020-2023). She holds a PhD in Political Science and International Relations from Yale University and a MA in International Development Economics and Human Rights from Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).