This Russia-Ukraine Dialogue, titled "Rebuilding Ukraine: Challenges and Opportunities," will take place prior to the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London.
Speakers will discuss the current state of the Ukrainian economy and the role of government and the private sector in supporting the reconstruction process. They will also explore the challenges of implementing an ambitious reform agenda and reducing risk to encourage investment in Ukraine.
The panel will provide valuable insights into the economic and social stabilisation needs of Ukraine, and offer recommendations for mobilising international support and financing private sector participation in the reconstruction process. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the opportunities available in specific sectors and be inspired to contribute to the recovery efforts of Ukraine.
Meet the speakers and chair
Gavin Gray (@IMFinEurope) is the mission chief for Ukraine at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and in this capacity leads policy discussions with the Ukrainian authorities. In his 17-year career at the IMF, he has worked on a diverse range of countries including Iraq, Ireland, Latvia, Pakistan, and South Africa. Prior to joining the IMF, he worked at the UK Treasury, HSBC Investment Bank, and the Economist Intelligence Unit. He studied at the London School of Economics.
Luke Cooper (@lukecooper100) is an Associate Professorial Research Fellow at the Conflict and Civicness Research Group, based at LSE IDEAS, the LSE's in house foreign policy think tank and Director of PeaceRep's Ukraine programme, an action orientated research programme that seeks to provide data, evidence and analysis in support of Ukraine's democratic institutions and territorial integrity. He is the author of 'Market economics in an all-out war? Assessing economic risks to the Ukrainian war effort' (LSE, 2022) and 'Authoritarian Contagion: The Global Threat to Democracy' (Bristol University Press, 2021).
Nataliia Shapoval (@Nataliia_Shapo) guided and conducted policy research on public procurement, the cost of HIV disease, the financial burden of health care costs, and private sector-driven growth strategies. She served as a contributor to the Ukraine reform monitoring project of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She is also a member of the Editorial Board of VoxUkraine. Nataliia Shapoval got a master's degree in Probability Theory and Statistics from Taras Shevchenko National University and a Master’s in Economic Analysis from Kyiv School of Economics.
Leon Hartwell (@LeonHartwell) is a Senior Associate at LSE IDEAS and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) in Washington DC. His research interests include conflict resolution, genocide, diplomacy, democracy, the Russia-Ukraine war, and the Western Balkans. Previously, Hartwell was the Senior Advisor of the Central and South-East Europe Programme (CSEEP) and the 2022 Sotirov Fellow at LSE IDEAS, and CEPA’s Acting Director of the Transatlantic Leadership Program. From 2012 to 2013, he was also the Senior Policy Advisor for Political and Development Cooperation at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Zimbabwe, where his work included government and civil society engagement, political reporting, peace building projects, and supporting human rights defenders. In 2019, Hartwell completed a joint doctoral degree summa cum laude at Leipzig University (Germany) and Stellenbosch University (South Africa). His thesis analyzed the use of mediation in the resolution of armed conflicts. Hartwell has published extensively in professional scholarly outlets and mainstream media ranging from the Negotiation Journal (Harvard-MIT-Tufts) and Oxford University Press to War on The Rocks. He speaks Afrikaans, English, Dutch, and Latvian, which he studied at the U.S. Foreign Service Institute.
More information about the event
Event hashtag: #LSERussiaUkraine
LSE IDEAS (@lseideas) is LSE's foreign policy think tank. Through sustained engagement with policymakers and opinion-formers, IDEAS provides a forum that informs policy debate and connects academic research with the practice of diplomacy and strategy.
This panel is part of LSE IDEAS' Russia-Ukraine Dialogues. Given the recent escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian war (24 February 2022), the conflict continues to be fluid and requires cross-disciplinary analysis. Fortnightly panels, scheduled for Tuesdays, will bring together in-house and external experts to report on and discuss the war’s impacts on various global issues.