Christopher Gilbert is Adjunct Professor atthe SAIS Bologna Center, Johns Hopkins University. He retired in 2014 from the University of Trento, Italy, where he was Professor of Econometrics. Prior to moving to Italy in 2003, Gilbert was Professor of Finance at the Free University, Amsterdam. He studied at Oxford (from where he has his doctorate) and LSE. His previous university positions were at London (both Queen Mary and Birkbeck), Oxford and Bristol universities. He has consulted extensively for the EC, FAO, IADB, ICO, IMF, OECD, UNCTAD and the World Bank. His research has covered econometrics, agricultural, energy and metals markets, food security issues, and commodity futures markets.