Marcus has more than 30 years’ experience in the Education Sector holding senior leadership roles for blue chip client, Tier 1 contracting and major consultancy organisations. Working with over 20 Universities he has delivered more than £1b capital assets in live campus environments. Marcus promotes cross industry collaboration to deliver the best outcomes. supporting Universities to optimise their estates, whilst maximising the student and academic experience.

Helen is an Architect with 25 years’ experience in the Education Sector. As Head of Education Architecture for AtkinsRéalis, Helen brings together the team designing everything from nurseries to university facilities. She has a passion for working with stakeholders to promote the value of good design, whilst embedding the importance of human centred design and wellbeing. Her recent experience includes research-led design for University Masterplans, Space Analysis, Decarbonisation Solutions, New Build and Refurbishments, as well as helping Universities visualise their estates with Digital Solutions.

Chris Higgins is the senior Programme Director for Workplace Real Estate and Facilities (WREF) at GSK, leading the delivery of their new Global Headquarters, an innovative workplace focused on innovation, health, wellbeing and performance.

Alex is an Associate Director in the Project and Programme Services (PPS) team at AtkinsRéalis. Her primary experience is within the corporate real estate (CRE) sector delivering office fit-out, refurbishment and workplace projects. She is the CRE Sector Lead for London and South East and a member of the CoreNet Workplace Committee (UK Chapter).

Ellie is a Chartered Business Psychologist with a Masters in Occupational Psychology and a professional member of the British Psychological Society and the Association for Business Psychologists. Her academic research has predominantly focused on the impact of mental health disclosures within the workplace and the subsequent effect on trust and transparency within leadership, as well as the psychological impact of remote working on behavioural outcomes such as psychological wellbeing, work-life balance and job satisfaction.

Debbie is a seasoned and qualified Quantity Surveyor with a rich background in private consultancy. Her diverse portfolio includes notable projects such as a 14-story office to residential conversion in Watford, the transformation of an office into 88 student bedrooms above commercial premises in Nottingham, the conversion of a warehouse into 22 luxury apartments, and a new community and sports facility for the YMCA in Newark. Debbie's expertise extends to projects like pharmacy refurbishments and teaching space developments alongside infrastructure projects such road alterations in Newark & Hucknall and HS2 enabling projects during Phase 1 London to Birmingham. With a wealth of experience, she later transitioned to the University of Nottingham, where she served as Capital Projects Manager for the last five years and is currently focusing on critical infrastructure projects for the University.

Aga Wegiel, the Infrastructure and Facilities Officer at the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, uniquely bridges academia and facilities. Formerly overseeing the university's largest student residence, Crown Place, Aga moved from 10 years in Residences to her current faculty role. Her strong ties to the university extend beyond employment; she holds a master's degree in Consumer Marketing as a UOL alumna. With a diverse background, including private sector experience in student accommodation management, Aga brings a multifaceted perspective to the crossing of academic environments and facility operations.

Gordon McLeod is a Project Manager at the University of Glasgow specialising in the redevelopment of their expansive and diverse campus. He has spent close to 20 years in the construction industry predominantly in MEP contracting before moving into the HE Sector to work on the client side. The last 2 years have seen him immerse himself in the world of HE and look to add value through the introduction of new ideas and processes taken from his time in the private sector. Gordon has a Masters Degree in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering with Business Studies. He is a member of the AUE.

Nare Tshimangadzo started her career in Higher Education in 2002, when she was appointed as a residence manager and later moved to become the Head of Operations Residences at the University of Johannesburg, overseeing thirty-five residences across the university’s four campuses with the focus being on residence facilities. She served in the ACUHO-I the South African Chapter as a faculty member training Housing Officers on the relevant competencies for their profession for over four years. She joined University of the Witwatersrand in 2019 as the Operations Manager responsible for Cleaning and Hygiene within Systems and Operations Division. She is also serving in HEFMA’s regional chapters.

Philip Dalgleish is a Chartered Building Surveyor undertaking the role of Estates Building Manager which involves looking after planned and reactive maintenance to the building fabric at the University of York. Prior to staring at York in 2009, Philip worked for a number of large consultancy firms as a project manager on various commercial and public sector schemes as well as advising clients on a range of building surveying related issues such as pre acquisition surveys and dilapidations.

Fiona is founding director of FiD, a London-based consultancy set up in 2006. Drawing on her qualifications covering architecture, psychology, teaching and business, she focuses on enabling change. Having learnt that nobody knows as much as everybody, her approach is discourse-based, supported by relevant information and scenario modelling. Over the past 35 years Fiona has worked in design, teach, research and consultancy roles across more than 200 organisations. Her aim is to help clients create a compelling narrative, where their conversation starts to move from ‘the way things are’ to ‘this is what we believe our future could be’.

Hiral is a researcher and educator dedicated to comprehending the needs of users in the built environment. Her focus encompasses learning pedagogies, socio-material practices, holistic building performance, briefing processes and building adaptation. Her extensive research portfolio delves into learning environments including academic library buildings, teaching spaces, and social learning spaces with an aim to develop practical interventions. Serving as a trustee of the University Design Forum, Hiral engages within the higher education sector bridging academia and practice. With industry experience in the UK and India, Hiral has a multifaceted career spanning research, business processes, project management, and technical building design.

Jane joined AUDE in November 2015 as executive officer and was promoted to executive director a year later. A graduate of the University of Leicester, and with 10 years’ experience managing estates at Leicestershire County Council, Jane's responsibilities include the organisation of the annual AUDE conference and helping deliver a wide range of support to university directors of estates. These include developing and maintaining a strategic plan in order to ensure a professional, innovative, efficient and effective university estates and facilities sector.

Professor Peter Hopkinson joined the Business School in 2017 where he is co-director of the Exeter Centre for Circular Economy. Prior to this he was based at the Bradford Management School where he has two primary roles. Firstly, Director of the University Ecoversity initiative, a whole institutional programme to embed sustainability into the research, teaching and operational performance of the University. This involved the design and build of a new £5M BREEAM outstanding Centre as a home for Ecoversity and circular economy activity. Secondly, since 2009, Peter led the University’s strategic partnership with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) as a Global Pioneer for Circular Economy. In 2014 he established the world’s first MBA in Circular economy. In parallel he created a Global on-line Masterclass – An introduction to Circular Economy for the Ellen MaCarthur Foundation CE100 and Global Partners which ran for 5 years and attracted over 1000 participants. During this time Peter worked closely with the EMF to translate the principles of circular economy into multiple research and educational contexts including EPSRC and Innovate UK grants, policy and industrial sector application and c-suite, postgraduate, undergraduate and civic society courses and workshops.

Matthew Griffin, one of the world's most renowned futurists and foresight experts, is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working across the next 50 years. Matthew is also the founder of X Potential University, the world's first free to attend futures and foresight university, and the World Futures Forum which works with the United Nations to help solve the worlds greatest challenges. 12 times author of the Codex of the Future Series, and the first person to write a complete book using AI with all profits going to charity, Matthew is a distinguished international keynote, and host of the hit Fanatical Futurist podcast.

Kabelo Mocwane is the Executive Secretary of the Higher Education Facility Management Association in South Africa and the Deputy Director: Operations at the University of the Witwatersrand's Property and Infrastructure Management Division. He holds BSc and MSc degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cape Town and is an alumnus of the "Future Leaders Team" of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. He is a registered Professional Engineer and a Chartered Manager Fellow, bringing over 19 years of technical and managerial experience. Kabelo is passionate about sustainable maintenance, facilities management, and biodiversity, and is committed to excellence in his field.

Jo is the Vice-President of the Tertiary Education Facilities Management Association (TEFMA) and the Director of Property Services and Information Management, in the Infrastructure, Property and Precincts Group at Deakin University. Jo is currently undertaking a Master’s in Business Administration.

Jodie Harris is Senior Manager for Sustainability and Campus Planning at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia, which includes oversight of the Nangak Tamboree Wildlife Sanctuary, a unique outdoor laboratory. With over 25 years working in higher education, New South Wales (NSW) and Victorian local government, NSW State government and Olympic Park Coordination Authority, and private consultancy, Jodie has unique insights into and experience in urban planning and design, and sustainability, and has a strong interest in community engagement.

Syd is the Chair Elect of AUDE, NW Regional Chair and member of the AUDE EDI and Professional Development Groups. He is in his tenth year at the University of Liverpool following on from six years within the NHS and prior to that at Edge Hill University for over eleven years.

Andy has 20+ years’ experience working in both the private and public sector. He is Director of Property, Space and Development at the University of Nottingham and has worked for 3 other universities (Bradford, Leeds Beckett, Sheffield and now Nottingham). He has responsibility for portfolio management (the programme office), space and property management, estate strategy and capital development and sustainability. Prior to that, Andy was the Director of Sustainable Development at Sheffield City Council and has worked in multi-authority partnerships locally and nationally. Andy Chairs the Sustainability Advisory Group for the Association of University Directors of Estates (AUDE) and is a long-standing member and Fellow of the EAUC. Andy has particular interests in coaching and mentoring – outside work he is Chairman of one of the oldest junior football clubs in Sheffield, where he lives. He coaches an under-18 girls football club. All of the above explains the grey hair.

Andy is an Associate Director in Arup leading Sustainable Buildings across the North West and Yorkshire. He has been a specialist dedicated to sustainable buildings for 17 years and leads a team of highly varied experts. Andy has extensive knowledge of the HE sector, working at a sector-level for AUDE and EAUC along with many individual institutions. Andy has particular interest in making sustainable solutions pragmatic & implementable as opposed to idealistic & ignored and, within this, a focus on decarbonisation, health & wellbeing and climate adaptation & resilience. Outside of work he chairs the Sheffield Sustainability Network helping SMEs on their sustainability journey.

Liz Bonnin is a science and natural world expert and broadcaster, celebrated for her award-winning blue chip projects including Drowning in Plastic and Blue Planet Live. Liz's career has taken her around the world, studying animal behaviours and shining a spotlight on important environmental issues. Her most recent BBC Two series saw Liz return to her Caribbean roots to discover the region's remarkable wildlife, and the people fighting to preserve it. Liz has a Masters degree in wild biology from the Royal Veterinary College and Zoological Society of London, and was elected the first female president of The Wildlife Trusts.

Over the past three decades, Anita Edson has cultivated a career that reflects a profound commitment to the advancement of academic environments through strategic estate management and development. Beginning her career as a Quantity Surveyor and moving into Project Management, Anita has ascended through various leadership roles, each offering unique challenges and opportunities to influence the physical landscape of education. Her role as Director of Estates & Campus Facilities at Cardiff University marks the pinnacle of this journey, where her strategic vision and passion for sustainability are driving significant improvements in campus facilities and infrastructure. Anita's career is highlighted by a series of successful projects that not only enhance the aesthetic and functional aspects of campus environments but also contribute positively to the academic community and the wider society.