Dan O’Brien is Chief Economist at the Institute of International and European Affairs, Ireland’s leading foreign affairs think tank, and a weekly columnist with the Irish Independent and the Sunday Independent. He is also Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the School of Politics and International Relations at UCD. Dan has spent the largest part of his career to date as senior economist and editor at the Economist Intelligence Unit. Working from London and Geneva over a dozen years, he covered Europe and global trade and investment issues. He has worked in the diplomatic service of the European Commission. He has also worked for the United Nations and as economics editor of the Irish Times. He has commented frequently in the international media, for broadcasters such as CNN and the BBC and in print, for newspapers such as the International Herald Tribune and the Financial Times. His book “Ireland, Europe and the World: Writings on a New Century” was published in 2009.