Ryan Neelam

Program Director, Public Opinion and Foreign Policy
Ryan Neelam
Biography
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Ryan Neelam is Program Director of the Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program at the Lowy Institute and is Project Lead on the annual flagship publication, the Lowy Institute Poll.

Prior to joining the Institute, Ryan spent 14 years as an Australian diplomat. He was most recently Australia’s Deputy Consul-General in Hong Kong and acted as the head of the consulate during an extended period of political upheaval in the territory and the onset of the Covid pandemic.

Ryan was previously posted to the Australian Mission to the United Nations in New York, where he represented Australia on global economic, climate change and human rights issues, was a key Australian negotiator of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and served on Australia’s UN Security Council team during its 2013–14 term.

In Australia, Ryan served as the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Deputy State Director for NSW, and in Canberra he has contributed to Australia’s UN, climate and development policies.

Ryan holds a Bachelor of Economics and Social Sciences (Honours) from the University of Sydney.

Australia-United States: How to disagree with a superpower
Australia-United States: How to disagree with a superpower
The 2025 Lowy Institute Poll illustrates the areas of contention and convergence in a longstanding alliance.
Lowy Institute Poll 2025
Interactive
Lowy Institute Poll 2025
How do Australians think we should respond to the changing world order?
In Donald Trump we distrust – in record numbers
Commentary
In Donald Trump we distrust – in record numbers
Originally published on The Australian Financial Review
2025 Lowy Institute Poll — Preview
Polling
2025 Lowy Institute Poll — Preview
Trust in the United States drops to a new low, Australians’ confidence in political leaders’ foreign policy abilities.
Brazil's 2024 G20 Summit: Right Agenda, Little Consensus
Commentary
Brazil's 2024 G20 Summit: Right Agenda, Little Consensus
This article first appeared in the Council of Council's Global Perspectives, 26 November 2024.
End game at COP29: Green talks in the “Blue Zone”
End game at COP29: Green talks in the “Blue Zone”
The best hope is that the final hours are following a predictable pattern of brinkmanship.
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