Contributors

Lola Lafon is a writer and musician. Born in France, Lafon grew up in Sofia and Bucharest, and now lives in Paris. The Little Communist Who Never Smiled is Lafon's fourth novel; it has been translated into eleven languages and won ten literary prizes in France, including the Prix Ouest-France Etonnants Voyageurs, the Prix Jules Rimet and the Prix Version Femina.

Gavin Lambert was born in England but lived for much of his life in Hollywood. He was the author of several novels (The Slide Area, Inside Daisy Clover, The Goodbye People), non-fiction (including On Cukor, The Dangerous Edge) and screenplays (Sons and Lovers, for which he gained an Academy Award nomination, and Inside Daisy Clover). Gavin Lambert also wrote biographies of Hollywood stars, including Norma Shearer, Lindsay Anderson and Natalie Wood. He died in 2005.

Ted Ladd is a Dean and Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Hult International Business School and teaches innovation at Harvard University. He has participated in six different start-ups in Silicon Valley, the most recent acquired by Google.

Nella Larsen was born in Chicago in 1893 of a Danish mother and a West Indian father. She began writing during the Harlem Renaissance, a period during which black artists, writers, and musicians were prominent in the New York art scene. The success of Quicksand and Passing made Nella Larsen one of the most fêted woman writers of her generation. She died in 1963 in obscurity. Now her 'lost' work is being rediscovered and celebrated.

Alessandro Lanteri is Professor of Strategy at ESCP Business School and teaches executive education programs for Said Business School and London Business School. He is the author of CLEVER: The Six Strategic Drivers for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Anton La Guardia is Brussels correspondent of The Economist, for which he writes the Charlemagne column. He previously worked for two decades as a foreign correspondent in the Middle East and Africa, and is the author of Holy Land, Unholy War: Israelis and Palestinians (Penguin, 2006).

A.G. Lafley, described as the 'king of management' by Fortune Magazine, has been the chairman and CEO of Proctor & Gamble since 2000 and in 2006 was named CEO of the Year by Chief Executive magazine. He lives in New York.

Olivier Lagalisse is an ethologist that specializes in canine behavior.

Julia Laite is a senior lecturer in modern history at Birkbeck, University of London. As an expert in the history of prostitution, she has written for the Guardian, Open Democracy and History & Policy , and appeared on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour and Making History, as well as the television programme Find My Past. She tweets @JuliaLaite

Max Landsberg is an internationally recognised authority on executive coaching, development and leadership. His books on coaching, motivation and leadership have sold more than 250,000 copies in fifteen languages. Max combines the strategic perspectives of having been a partner at McKinsey & Company with the developmental insights learned and refined as a senior partner at Heidrick & Struggles, and currently at Korn Ferry. Previous books include: The Tao of Coaching, The Tao of Motivation, The Tools of Leadership.

Nick Lane is a biochemist in the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London. 'Like his forebears in that same department – Steve Jones, JBS Haldane – he's that rare species, a scientist who can illuminate the bewildering complexities of biology with clear, luminous words' (Observer). His research focuses on the role of bioenergetics in the origin of life and the evolution of cells. Nick was awarded the 2015 Biochemical Society Award for his outstanding contribution to the molecular life sciences. He has published four critically acclaimed books, which have been translated into 20 languages. Life Ascending won the 2010 Royal Society Prize for Science Books. The Independent described him as 'one of the most exciting science writers of our time.'

David Lane has written for the Guardian and the Financial Times, and since 1994 has been The Economist's Business and Finance Correspondent for Italy. His last book was the highly regardedBerlusconi's Shadow (2004). He has lived in Rome since 1972.