Afshin Molavi

Afshin Molavi is a Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and co-founder of the emerge85 Lab, an initiative dedicated to exploring the economic, political, and cultural ramifications arising from rapid urbanization, unprecedented connectivity, and growing middle classes in Africa, Asia, and Latin America – home to 85% of the world’s population. He is also a Senior Global Advisor at Oxford Analytica and the founder of the Emerging World newsletter. As a former journalist, geopolitical risk analyst, and World Bank staffer, Molavi has traveled widely, logging hundreds of thousands of miles across the globe, chronicling our world in surprising ways.

Peppering his talks with anecdotes from his travels, a deep reading of history, broad industry knowledge, and touches of pop culture, Molavi speaks widely on topics such as US-China relations, Middle East and Ukraine volatility, energy policy shifts, and the impact of global events on markets and businesses. His expertise in Economics, Futurist insights, Global Leadership, and Media/News Journalism, combined with his background as a Dubai-based journalist with Reuters, enables him to offer deep economic insights and broad trends analysis. From Amsterdam to Abu Dhabi, from Boston to Beijing, Molavi has delivered impactful keynotes for a wide range of audiences from global asset management firms and leading investment banks to travel and tourism boards and trade associations.

Molavi’s writings over the years have appeared in major publications such as The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Reuters, and The Economist. He has also served as a senior research fellow at the New America Foundation think tank, where he was a former director of the World Economy Roundtable, and previously worked as an advisor at the International Finance Corporation, the private sector development arm of the World Bank. Additionally, he is founder and editor of the Emerging World newsletter on Substack, a blog that explores global trends, emerging markets, and globalization. Molavi is also an avid novel reader, a “weekend warrior” in basketball and tennis, a long-suffering Washington sports fan, an award-winning documentary film producer, and father of two kids. He lives in Washington DC.