Justin Anderson

Managing Director, Data & Digital - Connected Places Catapult

Mete Coban MBE

Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy - Greater London Authority

Graeme Craig

Director & Chief Executive - Places for London

Carolyn Dwyer

Non-Executive Director - Connected Places Catapult

Claudette Forbes

Non-Executive Director & Senior Independent Director - Connected Places Catapult

Erika Lewis

CEO - Connected Places Catapult

Andy Lord

Commissioner - Transport for London

Catherine McGuinness CBE

Non-Executive Director & IUK Nominated Director - Connected Places Catapult

Darran Messem

Non-Executive Director - Connected Places Catapult

Stuart Patrick CBE

Non-Executive Director - Connected Places Catapult

Gareth Powell

Non-Executive Director - Connected Places Catapult

Sameer Savani

Transport Managing Director - Connected Places Catapult

Dr Alison Vincent CBE

Non-Executive Director & Chair of Remuneration & Nominations Committee - Connected Places Catapult

Lucy Yu

Non-Executive Director & Chair of the Projects, EDI & Sustainability Committee - Connected Places Catapult

Alan Welby

Managing Director, Built Environment & Local Growth - Connected Places Catapult

Professor Greg Clark CBE

Chair - Connected Places Catapult

Greg Clark is Chair of Connected Places Catapult. He is a British and Irish writer, Board Chair, Non-Executive Director, and advisor on cities, mobility, built environment, and urban innovation. He is the author of 10 books and 100 reports on cities, mobility, real estate, climate, urban economies, investment, and place leadership, and has worked with 400 cities around the world. In the UK. He is Chair of Connected Places Catapult (CPC), the UK’s national innovation accelerator for transport, cities, and place leadership, and Chair of the Cities Commission for Climate Investment (3Ci), which convenes local leaders and investors to find innovative means to capitalise a just urban transition. He is a Board Member of Transport for London (TfL). He chairs TfL’s Land and Property Committee, which oversees TfL’s property company, Places for London. He is a Senior Advisor to New London Architecture, and Hon Prof of cities and innovation at Strathclyde University. Greg is also chair of the UK Government’s Secure Connected Places Advisory Group. He was previously Lead Advisor, Cities & Regions, Office of Deputy Prime Minister (2004-2010), Executive Director, London Development Agency, Chief Executive of the London Enterprise Agency, Managing Director of Greater London Enterprise, and he teaches regularly at LSE and University College London. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS). Globally. Greg is Hon Global Fellow at the Urban Land Institute (ULI). He is the former chair of the OECD LEED Forum of Cities and Regions (1996-2016) and former Global Fellow on cities at the Brookings Institution. He has advised the World Bank, European Investment Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, and the HSBC Group on cities, sustainability, and financial innovation. He is currently working with the Inter-American Development Bank on the future of the cities of the Amazon, where 47,000,000 people live. Greg has chaired more than 20 International Advisory Boards and Committees for Cities; including New York, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, Mumbai, Vienna, Oslo, Barcelona, Turin, Toronto, Auckland, and Cape Town. He is a member of the WEF Global Future Council on Cities & Urbanisation, and a member of the Bloomberg NEF Council on Cities.

Amit Bhave

CEO - CMCL

Anna Jordan

CEO - Alchera Technologies

Rob Quinn

CEO - MakeSense Technology

Kellie Beirne

Chief Executive - Cardiff Capital Region

Kellie Beirne is the Chief Executive of Cardiff Capital Region – the partnership of ten councils working to improve the lives of the 1.5m residents in South East Wales through transforming the economy, business landscape and innovation in the Region. Kellie joined CCR in 2018 from her role as Deputy Chief Executive at Monmouthshire County Council, where she gained a reputation for promoting the entrepreneurial state. Kellie is a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales, an Honorary Fellow of Cardiff University, a Governor at Cardiff Metropolitan University and sits on several innovation advisory boards including the Morgan Advanced Studies Institute at Swansea University, Cardiff University’s International Board and the Connected Places Catapult Advisory Group.

Andrew Carter

Chief Executive - Centre for Cities

Rokhsana Fiaz OBE

Mayor of Newham - Newham Council

David Hughes

CEO - East West Rail

David’s path has been firmly rooted in the transport sector. From 2021 to 2024, he served as the Director General for Rail Infrastructure Group at the Department for Transport. In this role, he provided leadership and oversight for DfT's portfolio of major rail investment projects. Before DfT, he held the position of Strategy and Programme Director at Transport for the North. But David's passion for transport goes back even further. He spent 15 years at Transport for London, where he led the development and planning of major rail infrastructure projects, including iconic ones like Crossrail and the Northern Line Extension. Additionally, he played a key role in upgrades across the London Underground network. Prior to joining EWR Co., David has been at Arup as the Major Programmes Director. There, he focused on supporting and accelerating the delivery of significant national infrastructure and strategic change programmes.

Clare Wildfire

Global Cities Lead - Mott MacDonald

Clare is Global Cities Lead with global engineering, management and development consultancy, Mott MacDonald. Having led regeneration, low carbon and sustainable innovation projects across the globe, Clare uses systemic thinking to push boundaries and, most importantly, improve people’s lives. From her 35 years’ experience in the sector, originally as a building services engineer on sustainable buildings, she combines her practical understanding of construction and development drivers with policy engagement, bringing insight into the technical, political, financial and behavioural aspects of sustainable development and healthy, resilient, low carbon living. [Could also add this, I’m happy for you to decide] Clare co-created an industry-led collaboration of infrastructure organisations supporting the UK transition to net zero, including authoring a report ‘A place-based approach to net zero’ on the city-scale transition, which explores the challenges and opportunities facing city leaders.

Jan Ward CBE

Chair - Plymouth & South Devon Freeport

Gavin Winbanks

FDI expert and co-founder of the Office for Investment - White Hawk Green

Gavin Winbanks founded White Hawk Green, a strategic advisory firm in 2022, working with Governments, investors, and companies across the built environment. Gavin co-founded DBT’s Office for Investment for No.10 Downing Street in 2020. From 2016 Gavin was the Senior Civil Servant for DBT’s Capital Investment team attracting international investment into UK real estate and infrastructure projects. Prior to joining HMG, Gavin led Macquarie Group’s External Relations EMEA and was Chief of Staff for the regional CEO. He was previously a member of the Urban Land Institute’s UK Executive Committee.

Susan Ross

Deputy Director - Edge Innovation

With over 20 years' experience in the VCSE sector across the Midlands and North East, Susan brings deep knowledge of community-led regeneration, especially in rural areas. She has led complex public sector partnerships and supported projects from grassroots initiatives to multi-million pound developments. With expertise in engagement, consultation, marketing, funding, and project management, Susan bridges the private, public, and charitable sectors. She also holds several voluntary roles, including director of a health and wellbeing CIC and chair of a community association. Susan is passionate about placing people at the heart of innovation, as seen in her work with the Tees Valley Innovation Challenge Programme.

Paul Perera

Strategy & Technology Operations Director - Waygate Technologies

Helen Barden

Director - External Affairs - North Standard

Helen Barden is Director – External Affairs at NorthStandard, a leading global marine mutual headquartered in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Helen leads NorthStandard’s stakeholder and policy engagement on maritime decarbonisation, but is also involved with policy on sanctions/geopolitics and emerging technologies. Helen co-leads NorthStandard’s Navigating Decarbonisation expertise team, supporting its Members with their understanding of the regulatory landscape and to bridge the gap between policy (or the absence of such) and practical and contractual implementation. Helen engages with a number of industry stakeholders to support shipping’s energy transition, including BIMCO, Comite Maritime International, Nuclear Energy Maritime Organisation, International Chamber of Shipping, UK Chamber of Shipping, Global Maritime Forum and the UK National Clean Maritime Research Hub to name a few. Helen is also a Board member of the UK’s Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA UK).

Geraint Evans

Chief Executive Officer - UK Major Port Group

Tristan Smith

Professor of Energy & Transport - University College London (UCL)

Alex Green

Senior Business Development Manager – New Energy - Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL Group)

David Surplus

Chief Executive Officer - B9 Energy

Mark Eldridge

Director of Hydrogen - Element Materials Technology

Huw Edwards

Director of Stations & Placemaking - HS2

Elspeth Finch MBE

Chief Executive and Founder - IAND

Ben Raybould

Digital Lead, New Hospital Programme - Turner and Townsend

Melissa Zanocco OBE

Director, Growth Mission Accelerator - UK Research and Innovation

Mohammad Shana'a

Chief Executive Office - Morta

Ibrahim Mohamed

Infrastructure Investment & Freeport / Investment Zones Advisor - Office for Investment

Dame Susan Rice DBE

Chair - Forth Green Freeport

Prof. Mark Tewdwr-Jones

Professor of Cities and Regions - UCL

Dr Wei Yang OBE

Chief Executive Officer - Digital Task Force for Planning

Dr Wei Yang OBE is an internationally renowned town planner and urban designer advocating a place-based, whole-systems approach to the grand challenges of our time. She is Co-Founder and CEO of the Digital Task Force for Planning—the world’s first innovation-led social enterprise pioneering systemic transformation of spatial planning in the digital era—and Founder and Chair of Wei Yang & Partners, an award-winning masterplanning firm specialising in 21st-century Garden Cities and contemporary societal challenges. Wei promotes joined-up thinking across professions, having served as President of the Royal Town Planning Institute (2021) and Chair of the Construction Industry Council (2023–25). She is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, a Board Member of the British Library and Chair of its Capital Portfolio Committee, and an Honorary Professor at UCL. She has advised government as a member of the New Towns Taskforce (2024–25) and as an Expert Adviser for the London Plan Review (2023–24). She was awarded an OBE for her contribution to town planning in 2025.

Chris Coonick

UK/US Innovation Management Office Director - National Grid

Chris is National Grid’s UK/US Innovation Management Office Director. As part of this role Chris is responsible for driving the delivery of the Group Innovation Strategy, telling the story of how innovation outputs deliver impact for National Grid and our customers. Chris is a well-respected industry specialist with over 15 years’ experience in delivering and managing £multi-million research & innovation programmes and projects that pave the way to net zero. An active leader in the UK energy sector, Chris has been involved in national and international committees, developing future standards for an evolving technical landscape whilst heading up BRE’s National Solar Centre. Prior to joining the team at National Grid Chris set-up Ofgem’s £450m Strategic Innovation Fund and led a multi-disciplinary team for UKRI, the UK Government’s Research and Innovation agency.

Robert Harwood

Chief Executive Officer - Sim Analytica

Charlotte Hills

Head of Innovation - HS2

Rodney Berkeley CBE

Director of Infrastructure & Technology - Department for Business and Trade

Abanoub Ghobrial

Chief Executive Officer - Fidelis

Chris Hatter

Head of Compliance - Portsmouth International Port

Iwona Wilk

Programme Manager - Connected Places Catapult

Jack Wootton

Transformation Portfolio Manager - Serco

Jack is a transformation portfolio manager within Serco UK and Europe’s defence business unit. Operating across the engineering and asset management portfolio, he is responsible for managing the governance of a diverse array of projects, programmes, and sales opportunities. Jack is also leading on a number of innovation projects across the maritime, aviation, space, and technology domains. Beginning his career in 2019 as a graduate management trainee on Serco’s inaugural graduate scheme, he gained experience across contracts in health, transport and defence. He has been working within Serco’s defence business unit since 2021 and previously managed a decarbonisation programme on behalf of the maritime services contract. Jack graduated from the University of St Andrews with a degree in German and is an alumnus of Entrepreneurial Scotland’s ‘Saltire Scholars’ programme. In addition to his other commitments, Jack is currently the chair of the New Professionals Forum, a special interest group run by ADS that aims to support colleagues in the early stages of their careers across the aerospace, defence and security sectors.

Robert Bateman

Manager - Vehicle Research & Advanced Engineering - Nissan Technical Centre Europe

John Murphy

Head of Accessibility, Accessible & Inclusive Trave - Department for Transport (DfT)

Emma Partlow

Chief Executive Officer - National Centre for Accessible Transport (ncat)

Sophie Randall

Innovation Lead, Mobility & Cities - Innovate UK (IUK)

Robin Spinks

Head of Inclusive Design - RNIB

Amrit Chandan

CEO - Lorefully

Georgina Cruttenden

Consultant - Connected Places Catapult

Rebecca Goulding

Head of Enterprise Support (Transport) - Connected Places Catapult

Rue Mcilmoyle

Skills Lead - National Shipbuilding Office

Helen Davis

Director Strategy & Business Development, Rail Infrastructure - Siemens Mobility Limited

Graham Goswell

Rail Systems Operations Director - Worldline

Jenny Kavanagh

CEO and Founder

James Wright

HSE Leader - Port of Tyne