Advisory Team
Our Advisory Team brings together recognised experts who offer insight and guidance to help us achieve our mission.
Ryan Henson
Ryan is Chief Executive Officer at the Coalition for Global Prosperity, working to ensure the UK remains at the forefront of alleviating poverty, and bringing freedom, security, and prosperity to those who need it most. Ryan also serves as a UK Government Social Mobility Commissioner, and is an Associate Fellow at Bright Blue, the independent think tank for liberal conservatism.
Prior to joining the Coalition, he worked for the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, at the Ministry of Justice, and the Cabinet Office. Ryan served as a Reservist in the Royal Air Force, and was a founding trustee of a social mobility charity. He holds a first-class BA in History, and an MA in Modern and Contemporary British History, awarded via full academic scholarship, both from Queen Mary, University of London where he is undertaking a PhD.
Parvina is the Founder and Director of Realstrategik London, a public affairs consultancy specialising in political and business strategy, where she bridges governmental relations, regulatory navigation, and cross-jurisdictional partnerships to drive sustainable growth.
With over a decade in UK domestic politics, she held senior advisory roles with the Conservative Party across four Prime Ministers, orchestrating high-stakes election campaigns—including as Deputy Head of Candidate Engagement and Campaign Manager for General Elections—while developing candidate assessment programs, strategic communications, and parliamentary outreach initiatives that enhanced party recruitment and public engagement.
In international affairs, as Head of Policy Relations at a leading UK-based foreign policy think tank, she crafted innovative strategies on global security, energy transitions, and transatlantic relations, fostering key decision-maker networks.
She also serves as a strategic advisor to family offices in the Middle East, managing portfolio expansion and investment strategies. Holding advanced degrees in Eastern European politics and international economics from UCL and Westminster, Parvina positions herself as a vital connector, leveraging political acumen to inform investment decisions and facilitate synergies between policy and business landscapes.
Parvina Huseynova
Toby McCrindle
Toby is a Partner and the Head of Defence Technology at leading law firm Mishcon de Reya, with extensive experience across deeptech, defence technology and space. He advises founders, boards and leadership teams on scaling high-growth technology businesses, drawing on both private practice and in-house experience.
After seven years in private practice in London and the Middle East, including at Allen & Overy, where he advised major defence and aerospace manufacturers on complex, high-value programmes involving advanced radar, stealth and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities. From here, Toby moved into senior in-house roles, first at BAE Systems Plc, where he led the legal support to the Global Combat Air Programme working on what is now known as "Edgewing", among other significant programmes across Europe and the Middle East. He went on to serve as General Counsel at several scaling technology companies which collectively raised over $150m. At Mishcon he now advises many of NATO's leading defence technology companies as they build their capabilities and go to market globally.
Toby also contributes to the wider innovation ecosystem as a startup mentor with NATO DIANA and is an advisory board member to several high growth companies.