Before joining Oxfam GB in 2010, Alan spent fifteen years working in development and academia in Africa, Asia, and Europe. During this time, he was Communication Officer with UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) Malawi, and Kenya Programme Officer with Trócaire. He holds degrees in communications, journalism, international human rights law, and international relations, and is currently completing a PhD on the governance of climate change.

In 2009 he published the Handbook of Transnational Economic Governance Regimes (co-edited with Christian Tietje; Leiden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers). In his current role, Alan manages the Adaptation and Risk Reduction team in the Programme Policy department at Oxfam GB. The team has three priority areas of work: providing direct support to country programmes; generating programme-focused learning; and influencing internal and external policy. Within the team, Alan specialises in climate change adaptation, and provides support to two country programmes: Bangladesh and Nicaragua.