Daniel Colm 

About me

Алло?  Чё почём? 是你吗? 真好!  I'm just a guy from a small town in Northern Ireland who decided to learn seven languages and spend ten years in China, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine. I don't know why either. 

I'm an international researcher, translator, writer, educator, and...owner of this stunningly generic website that I just made with mimimal effort in my mother's bedroom! Werq. 

In every thing I do my motto is to make the familiar strange, and the strange familiar. Since my early years I have always felt like an alien –  somehow unable to forget I'm spinning on a rock in infinite space –  and this constant awareness of the strangeness of life has given me the desire to connect with others across the globe and led me down a peculiar international path. 

In 2016 I graduated with a first-class BA in Modern and Medieval Languages from the University of Cambridge, winning several awards for mastery of the Russian language. Between 2016-2020 I worked as a language and literature teacher in Shanghai and studied Mandarin in Sichuan. In 2023 I obtained three master's degrees in International Relations, Political Science and Eurasian Studies (IMCEERES) funded by the European Commission. I provide consulting and editorial services in the fields of  humanitarian affairs, travel and global politics. Most recently I have worked with Left Bank Analytics to create humanitarian reports from the ground in Ukraine, and conducted investigative reporting for the Peace & Security Monitor about social issues in Central Asia. 

In my spare time I practice ashtanga yoga, read books with big words, hike, stare at cats, and fall into an abyss of tiktok.