Bio
Linda Jakobson is part-time Senior Advisor at the China Office of Finnish Industries. In 2023 she returned to Europe after pursuing an international career as a China specialist for 35 years. She lived and worked in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for 22 years between 1987 and 2011. In 2011 she moved to Sydney where, among others, she founded and directed China Matters, an independent Australian policy institute.
A Mandarin speaker, Ms Jakobson has been invited to serve as a policy advisor on China to the foreign minister and senior government officials in seven countries. She is the author of five books and numerous reports and articles about the PRC and East Asia. She is internationally best known for her publications about the PRC’s foreign policy, the Taiwan issue, and the PRC’s Arctic ambitions.
Ms Jakobson previously held the following positions: Senior Researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs 1998-2008; Beijing-based Programme Director for China and Global Security at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) 2009-2011, East Asia Programme Director at the Lowy Institute for International Policy 2011-2013; Visiting Professor at the US Studies Centre at Sydney University 2014-2015; and Founding Director and CEO of China Matters 2015-2021.
Two of Ms Jakobson’s books and one report have received awards.
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