Charlie Mackenzie Portlock

Current Employer/Organisation Name

Royal Society for Asian Affairs

What have you been doing since leaving Exeter, and what are you doing now?

Since leaving Exeter, I have spent almost three years in my current role with the Royal Society for Asian Affairs. As Programmes and Media Secretary, I have run the organisations lecture and events schedule, founded and edited its magazine, edited its blog and supported its journal as well as fulfilling various charity governance roles. All of my work with the Society has been focused on current affairs across the whole of Asia and the Middle East and has seen me engage with bilateral societies, embassies in London and overseas, the FCDO, the British Museum, the Aga Khan Network, publishers, charities, schools and multiple universities, think tanks and research institutes.

Alongside my paid work, I have continued to chair Partners for Progress, a charity that I established in 2019 which supports education and community development projects in rural Nepal. In this capacity, I have visited Nepal multiple times working with local partners, local government, community groups and schools to deliver small-scale projects. In this role, I have also been on the Committee of the Britain-Nepal NGO Network which organises conferences at the British Embassy in Kathmandu and the Embassy of Nepal in London to promote cooperation and collaboration amongst small and medium sized NGOs working in Nepal. In a separate, but related capacity, I served for one year as the Honorary Secretary of the Britain-Nepal Charitable Trust administering its annual grant for small NGOs working in Nepal.

I have also, since leaving Exeter, served as the Chair of Trustees for More Education a medium sized charity based in Andover that supporters neurodivergent young people and is in the process of setting up a unique school to provide a tailored education provision for those who cannot access mainstream education in the UK.

Last but not least, earlier this year I was appointed as the new Editor of the East-West Review, the journal of the Great Britain – Russia Society and have joined the Society’s Management Committee. This is the first step in shifting my career direction to focus on my real passion which is Russia and the post-Soviet space.

Why did you choose this career? And what do you enjoy most about your work?

In many ways, each of the roles that I have had and continue to have came about by chance and I am very lucky to have met people or seen opportunities at the right time which have lead to these roles. In the context of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs, I thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to work with people who are specialists in their field. Being able to organise events on current affairs and commission written work from people with extensive experience, expertise and networks is a real privilege and a fantastic opportunity to grow my own network and connections on an almost daily basis.

Please tell us if you were a member of any societies, groups or sports clubs?

I went along and joined in with the ExMUN several times but as I was only at Exeter for a one year MA and didn’t live in Exeter at the time, I didn’t get much opportunity to join any other societies or groups.

What did you enjoy most about your programme and what was the biggest highlight?

I thoroughly enjoy the whole course but in particular a module we did on Central Asia and the opportunity to work as a Research Assistant on genocide denial for Dr Klejda Mulaj.

What did you most enjoy about studying here?

On-campus study was a new experience for me as my BA was done online through the Open University so it was great to be able to meet, engage and debate with like-minded fellow students and academics.

Why did you choose to study at Exeter?

The course had been recommended to me by a mentor who suggested it might be an interesting alternative to traditional IR and as I only live around 45 mins away from Exeter, it seemed like a natural choice.

What skills and experiences have been most useful for your career?

Critical thinking has become an increasingly important skill in a post-truth world in which narratives and disinformation are becoming more and more prevalent. Although the world has changed drastically since I graduate in 2022, the principles, ideas and concepts that I learnt during my degree still remain relevant and provide insights into which direction the world might head in next.

What advice would you give to a current student who wishes to pursue your career?

To get into the world of either current affairs analysis/ communication or NGOs/ international development, networks are critically important and the sooner you start building your own network the more valuable you become to others. I would recommend to anyone that becoming a charity trustee is a great place to learn a whole raft of useful skills and will be a great addition to your CV. Degrees are incredibly important but experience is equally important for employability and your own understanding of what works for/ interests you.

What are your plans for the future?

My plan is to shift the focus of my career on to security and foreign policy in relation to Russia and the post-Soviet space and perhaps to build up expertise on a region or country in that sphere. This could be in the areas of analysis, journalism, think tanks and/ or research and may involve relocating to the Baltics in the medium-term.