Based in our London office, Luke has a background in international politics, communications, and events. Luke holds an MSc in International Relations, and prior to joining Panterra he worked at the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development.

Maarten has over 20 years’ experience in visual storytelling. He specialises in creating powerful narratives that connect brands and organisations with their audiences in authentic and impactful ways.

Maarten has developed and led campaigns for multinationals, NGOs and cultural institutions, bringing strategic insight and creative direction to every project.  His clients include Shell, FedEx, Deutsche Bank, Royal House of the Netherlands, and the International Labour Organization.

With projects spanning more than 60 countries, his global experience has given Maarten a unique cross-cultural perspective and the ability to work sensitively and effectively in diverse environments.

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Mark is Director & Vice Chair of Panterra. In addition to overseeing our US operations, Mark helps drive our global business development efforts. Mark served at The White House as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on the National Security Council and at the U.S. Treasury as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs. He also worked at the State Department and the United Nations.

His business leadership posts have included: president of a strategic communications firm based in Washington, D.C.; president of the global private equity division of a leading asset management company headquartered in Chicago; and equity partner at a major international law firm where he led the sovereign advisory practice. He was also Vice President at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mark is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on several corporate and non-profit advisory boards, including the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) in Vienna, the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, and the Wilson Centre.

Rob leads Panterra and has primary responsibility for overseeing the Group’s activities across all divisions and regions. He has specialist expertise in advising on governmental affairs and international political trends, with particular focus on the European Union and the Middle East.

He previously worked in the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office, ran a macro-economic risk consultancy, and at an earlier stage in his career was an advisor to a European Commissioner and a senior member of Tony Blair’s government.

David is one of the UK’s most respected communications advisors, having provided reputation and crisis advice to some of the world's leading private individuals, multi-national companies and governments. 

David founded Panterra in 1997, bringing together an impressive team of associates with extensive media, communications, business and political experience. He has worked in over 100 countries around the world and has been named one of PR Week’s ‘Top 100 Most Influential People in PR During the Past 21 Years’. 

Before founding Panterra, he was Communications Director of Camelot, the UK's national lottery operator and was a founder member of the consortium that went on to win the first national lottery licence.  

Lord Darroch was the British Ambassador to the United States from 2016 - 2019. Prior to this, between 2012 - 2015, he served as the National Security Adviser to Prime Minister David Cameron, overseeing global issues and conflicts in Iraq, Libya and Ukraine. He held senior roles working on multilateral negotiations in UK-EU Policy, including working as the Permanent UK Representative to the European Union from 2007 – 2011, and as Prime Minister Tony Blair’s EU Adviser from 2004 - 2007.

Other roles held by Lord Darroch during his earlier career include Private Secretary to the Minister of State for the Middle East, Head of the News Department at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Head of the Adriatic Department during the Dayton Accords negotiations that put an end to the Bosnian War.

David leads public opinion research and strategy for a diverse set of clients spanning six continents and over three dozen countries. He has worked with businesses, advocacy organisations, and prominent politicians, advising election campaigns at all levels from presidential to ballot initiatives. His portfolio includes technology, civil rights, sustainability, and regulatory issues. He has specialist expertise in campaign strategy and audience targeting, including on consumer and B2B work for a range of tech startups, industry disruptors, and Fortune 50 companies.

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Nina has over a decade’s worth of experience as a conference producer and project manager at both DMG Events and CWC, where she acted as a senior operational and sales leader, working with governments and industry experts around the world to develop content-rich and commercially viable events.

Most recently, Nina has spent the last few years as the Director of Global Partnerships at the World Art Foundation, specialising in event formulation, sponsorship, & partnership structuring.

Nina has over a decade’s worth of experience as a conference producer and project manager at both DMG Events and CWC, where she acted as a senior operational and sales leader, working with governments and industry experts around the world to develop content-rich and commercially viable events.

Most recently, Nina has spent the last few years as the Director of Global Partnerships at the World Art Foundation, specialising in event formulation, sponsorship, & partnership structuring.

Bente is a public affairs and strategic communications advisor. She is also a national and international speechwriter, moderator, and interviewer - drawing on her experience as a host at the Danish Broadcasting Corporation. Prior to that, Bente was an advisor and speechwriter to the Speaker of the Danish Parliament and the Presidium.

Ebru Özdemir is Chairwoman at Limak Group of Companies, a Turkish conglomerate, with major interests in construction, energy, cement, and tourism. She also acts as Limak Foundation’s Chairwoman, a private foundation established in 2016 to professionally manage social investments of Limak Group of Companies.

Ebru serves as member of the Board of Executives and Board of Directors at the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey (DEİK),  and Chairwoman of the DEİK/Turkey-Kuwait Business Council. She holds board membership at the Turkish-American Business Council (TAİK) and DEİK/Turkey-Korea Business Council, and membership at the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TÜSİAD). Ebru is a regular participant at the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Annual Meetings in Davos, and is the only representative from Turkey at Bruegel, the Brussels-based think tank.

Ebru is among Founding Members and Board Members of Turkey’s 30 Percent Club, a voluntary platform aimed at developing a diverse and gender-balanced pool of talent for all businesses at all levels. She is also a member of TOBB’s Women Entrepreneurship Council and International Women’s Forum Turkey, and is an Atlantic Council International Advisory Board member.

John jointly leads our research work, building on a proven track record of success advising political, corporate, and organisational leaders around the world. He works with our clients to craft winning strategies that are about emotions not issues, people not policies, and actions not (just) words. Over the years, John has advised leaders at all levels and across multiple spheres. He has supported winning political campaigns on six continents, and built an expert practice advising tech companies and foundations – from Microsoft and Google, to the CNCF and Cloud Foundry – on their fundamental strategic challenges.

Christoph Heusgen served as Germany‘s Ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to 2021; he chaired the UN Security Council in April 2019 and July 2020. Between 2005 and 2017 he was Chancellor Angela Merkel‘s Diplomatic Advisor. Before, between 1999 and 2005 he was the Head of the Policy Unit supporting the European Union‘s first High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Javier Solana. In his diplomatic career he was also posted in Chicago, Paris and Bonn.

Christoph Heusgen chaired the Munich Security Conference between 2022 and 2025. He teaches Political Science at the University of St.Gallen (Switzerland).

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Ambassador Miroslav Lajčák served as the Slovak Minister of Foreign and European Affairs for four mandates. Prior to that, he served as Ambassador to Japan, to the then Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and latterly to Albania.

He also served as High Representative of the International Community and European Union Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue and other Western Balkan regional issues.  

Dr. Lajčák is a member of the European Council for Foreign Relations (ECFR), on the Board of Trustees of the Friends of Europe, the International Advisory Board of the European Forum Alpbach, the International board of GLOBSEC and he is also a member of the Scientific Council of the Matej Bel University in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.

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Dr. Joseph Stanislaw is founder of the advisory firm, The JAStanislaw Group, advising Boards of Directors and institutions on strategic thinking, sustainability, and environmentally sound investment in energy (all forms) and technology.  He currently serves on the International Advisory Board of Dana Gas, which is listed on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange and was previously a Board Member of Gulf Keystone Petroleum, a UK listed E&P company. Dr. Stanislaw is a Special Advisor Partner at private equity firm Wave Equity Partners and is also a Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and an adjunct professor in the Nicholas School at Duke University, where he was a Member of the Board of Advisors for the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions. Dr. Stanislaw was also a Partner at the private equity firm Brightstar Capital Partners, and an Advisory Board member at Good Energies Inc (GEI), one of the world’s first, leading, and largest investors in renewable and sustainable energy, with a particular commitment to improving the quality of life for citizens of impoverished nations.

Dr. Stanislaw was one of three founders of Cambridge Energy Research Associates in 1983 and served as President and CEO from 1997 until the sale of the firm in 2004. From 2006 to 2014, he served as Independent Senior Advisor, Energy and Sustainability to Deloitte LLP.

Dr. Stanislaw is the co-author of The Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy and the author of “Energy in Flux: The 21st Century’s Greatest Challenge”, used as the basis for a PBS Documentary, “Oil Shockwave.”  He has also authored and/or co-authored numerous reports and published papers on the geopolitics and economics of future energy supply and demand.

Bertrand Lauzeral is a non-executive director on the board of Panterra.

Bertrand has over 30 years of executive advisory and strategic consulting experience. In early 2006, he founded Exton Consulting in Paris, a strategic management consulting firm specialising in financial services advising major corporates around the world on key European markets. He successfully grew the company opening offices in Munich, Milan, Casablanca and Barcelona. In early 2021, Bertrand sold Exton Consulting to Accenture.

Before selling his global business, Bertrand was Vice-President at Orga Consultants, a private consulting firm specialising in strategy, management and organisational consulting. He held this role for 12 years and was a member of the Executive Committee in charge of the insurance department.

In addition to his role at Panterra, Bertrand is currently an executive advisor, investor, and mentor to a number of global start-ups.

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Daniel has over 35 years of corporate law experience advising companies across a wide range of industries particularly in mergers and acquisitions.

He co- founded Kerman & Co Solicitors in London in 1998 and acted as its managing partner and head of its corporate practice for over 20 years.

He set up US law firm Clark Hill’s European office in Dublin in 2017 and was that office’s first managing partner.

Daniel is also a board member of Alliuris.net an alliance of international business lawyers.

Mark is Director & Vice Chair of Panterra. In addition to overseeing our US operations, Mark helps drive our global business development efforts. Mark served at The White House as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on the National Security Council and at the U.S. Treasury as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs. He also worked at the State Department and the United Nations.

His business leadership posts have included: president of a strategic communications firm based in Washington, D.C.; president of the global private equity division of a leading asset management company headquartered in Chicago; and equity partner at a major international law firm where he led the sovereign advisory practice. He was also Vice President at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mark is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on several corporate and non-profit advisory boards, including the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) in Vienna, the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, and the Wilson Centre.

Charlie is responsible for setting and overseeing the company’s operational policies, initiatives and goals. She works closely with the CEO to set the strategic and financial direction of the group.

Charlie has primary responsibility for overseeing the daily operations of the Group.

Adam sits on the Board of Panterra.

Adam Wethered has over 45 years of international commercial and investment experience. This includes working for JP Morgan for 24 years. During the 1990s, he was head of JP Morgan’s London Offices, Chief Executive of JP Morgan Securities Ltd, Co-head of Corporate Finance and Chief Operating Officer in Europe, and Head of Private Banking and Institutional Clients, EMEA. In 2000, Adam co-founded Lord North Street – Private Investment Office, which he managed until its sale in 2014. He is Chairman of Wren Investment Office, a Multi Family Office business advising wealthy families and trustees. He is also a qualified barrister.  

Adam invests in and advises several entrepreneurial businesses. He chairs the Garrick Club investment. He is also on the Development Board of the British Academy. 

Based in our London office, Thomas leads the operation and implementation of major Create accounts, leveraging his global network of top-tier journalists and industry analysts to advance critical conversations on the world's most pressing issues, including security, energy, and diplomacy. Thomas has a background in domestic and international public policy, having previously worked for the US Congress and the USTDA, a global development agency based in Washington D.C.