Adrian Joseph is the Green Minerals Fellow in the Minerals and Development Programme at APRI, where he works closely with the team to examine how African countries can leverage their mineral endowments to advance industrialisation, value addition, and sustainable development. His research interests include natural resource governance, minerals diplomacy, and the role of think tanks in supporting evidence-informed policymaking in Africa.

He is a Konrad Adenauer Stiftung Scholar and a former Machel–Mandela Fellow at the Brenthurst Foundation. Prior to joining APRI, Adrian worked at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), where he analysed the geopolitics of critical minerals and provided research support to the African Green Minerals Observatory (AGMO). AGMO is a continental knowledge repository on Africa’s critical minerals, endorsed by the African Minerals Development Centre of the African Union, aimed at supporting the objectives of the African Mining Vision and African Green Mineral Strategy.

Adrian is completing his Master’s in International Relations at the University of Cape Town (UCT), where his thesis is focused on understanding the roles and challenges of think tanks as knowledge brokers in Africa. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics (PPE) from UCT. During his studies, he received a national award at the Nedbank and Old Mutual Budget Speech Competition for his contribution on land reform in South Africa.