Athena Tong is currently a Nonresident Vasey Fellow at Pacific Forum. She also serves as a Visiting Researcher at the University of Tokyo and a Research Associate & Programme Lead at the China Strategic Risks Institute (CSRI), a London-based think tank specialising in geopolitical risk and economic security. She sits on the Advisory Board of NetMission.Asia and the Public Opinion Research Project for Domestic and Overseas Hongkongers.
Her research interests include counter-influence operations, cognitive and psychological warfare, economic security, and China’s global influence strategies, with a particular focus on East Asia. She was a Visiting Scholar at the Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET) in Taiwan.
She holds a BSSc in European Studies from Hong Kong Baptist University and Sciences Po Paris, as well as an MA in Political Communications from the University of London. She is fluent in English, French, Cantonese, Mandarin, and Italian, and is currently advancing her proficiency in Japanese.
Her work integrates geopolitical analysis, regional expertise, and strategic communication, with a focus on East Asia’s evolving security landscape, supporting informed policy responses to influence operations and economic security challenges in East Asia.
