Studied Political Science and International Relations at the VU, Amsterdam, obtaining the drs (doctoranders) degree. Continued with an MSc. degree in International Political Economy at the London School of Economics (LSE). Following that and also from the LSE, he obtained a PhD degree in Business Management, specialising in Strategic Management. He worked as a free-lance consultant and market researcher, wrote country reports for the Economist Intelligent Unit for almost a decade as well as articles on the business side of the telecommunications sector for Phillips International. Before joining U.S.E. in February 2025, he taught at the LSE, the University of Surrey and at that university’s SII programme in Dalian (China) for over a decade on a variety of courses including Corporate Strategy, English Business Law, Political Economy of International Trade, and Ethics in Tourism, Hospitality and Events.