Join us for an evening in conversation with Mark Galeotti to celebrate his new book, Homo Criminalis: How Crime organises the World.An eye-opening exploration of how the world's criminal underbelly has shaped state-making, capitalism, globalisation and all forms of so-called legitimate power, Homo Criminalis shows the emergence of modern society through the evolution of the underworld and its crimes. As societies become more organised, as borders become more controlled, as taxes and tariffs fluctuate and subsequent black markets emerge, understanding criminality has never been more relevant to our daily headlines.Professor Mark Galeotti is one of the foremost experts on Russian politics, security and crime: that they are often one and the same may explain why he was banned by Moscow in 2022. He is now an Honorary Professor at UCL, Senior Associate Fellow at RUSI and director of the consultancy Mayak Intelligence, having previously headed the Centre for European Security at the Institute of International Relations Prague and been Professor of Global Affairs at NYU. A prolific author, he has briefed prime ministers, generals and CEOs, and his podcast 'In Moscow's Shadows' has been described as 'an indispensable and provocative take on all things Russian. His previous books include We Need to Talk About Putin (2019), A Short History of Russia (2022) and Downfall (2025).
