Kate joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 2013 and has held a variety of positions in London and overseas. She spent five years working on conflict prevention and response programmes in the Middle East and North Africa, including a posting to Istanbul as Head of the Syria Joint Programme Team – providing support to local councils, police forces, civil defence and agriculture projects in opposition held areas within Syria. As the Deputy Head of Sanctions Unit, Kate led work to transition E.U. sanctions regimes to a basis in U.K. law, and to establish the U.K.’s first independent sanctions regime – targeting those who abuse human rights. Most recently, Kate has been Deputy Ambassador in South Sudan leading the U.K.’s engagement on political affairs, and bringing together development and diplomatic expertise following the merger of the FCO with the Department for International Development (DFID). Before joining the FCO, Kate worked in various roles in the U.K. Department for Education and DFID, including working with the U.N. to bridge the gap between development and humanitarian agencies in order to develop a strategy on resilience to disasters. In her spare time, she enjoys running, reading, and baking.