London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

In this panel discussion, we have invited a wide range of speakers with experience in different fields in business related to the planetary health.

We aim to showcase the various career options that relate to topics of planetary health, and to engage audiences to the various planetary health topic (circular economy, energy, food production, health etc.) with real life examples.

Panels will speak about their work and its links to the planetary health followed by how research and academia support their areas and career opportunities. Majority of the event will be dedicated to discussions and questions from the audiences. The panel will be chaired by Sir Andy Haines, Professor of Environmental Change and Public Health.

For students, researchers, the public who are interested in Planetary Health or who wants to develop or expend their career choices.

This event is part of the Planetary Health Week 2019.

Moderator: Sir Professor Andy Haines

Confirmed Panellists:

Connor Bryant (Co-Founder & Director, Loop Innovations)

Shaunagh Duncan (Renewable Energy Manager, Bulb)

Tom Webster (CTO, GrowUp Urban Farms)

About the speakers: 

Connor Bryant is an industrial designer creating products and systems for the circular economy. He co-founded Loop Innovations, a sustainable design consultancy, alongside Jack Schneider, after they both graduated, from Loughborough University, with a first-class degree in product design and technology, BSc. At Loop Innovations, Connor is working with other businesses to improve the sustainability of their products, processes, and systems of delivery. A key principle of the company is to promote closed-loop thinking by considering the entire life cycle of products - and to ensure that the solutions proposed make environmental sense. Currently, Connor is working in a partnership called the Rubbish Project. They are developing a fully recycled and recyclable plastic cup for festivals and events. Other work includes graphic design, sustainability consulting and designing machines to facilitate recycling - and he’s become experienced at 3D printing with recycled material. 

Shaunagh Duncan is the Renewable Energy Manager at Bulb, the fastest growing renewable energy supplier in the UK. She is responsible for creating and managing partnerships with our community of renewable generators. This includes buying renewable gas, managing Bulb's portfolio of carbon offset projects, as well as overseeing Bulb's sustainability reporting and energy communication strategy. Shaunagh has an MSc from Imperial College in Sustainable Energy Futures, and has worked in the sustainability/renewable energy sector for over four years.

Tom Webster co-founded GrowUp Urban Farms with his business partner Kate Hofman 6 years ago to deliver on their joint vision of using high tech growing systems to contribute to towards a sustainable food system. They started in a shipping container with a greenhouse on top, then 4 years ago they built a prototype vertical farm in a warehouse in Beckton. At the end of 2017 after they had learnt all they could from our prototype they closed it down and now they are working of what they think the future of Control Environment Production looks like. As the Chief Technology Officer Tom is responsible for the R&D and design going into the next generation of Controlled Environment Production Facilities (CEPF), which they believe will be capable of growing affordable, delicious & safe food with minimal environmental impact. In 2017, Tom was featured in the Forbes 30 under 30 list for his work addressing some of the fundamental flaws in our agricultural systems in a way that contributes to a more sustainable society. When he is not working, he climbs, cooks and spends as much time outdoors as possible. 

Please note that this session will NOT be live-streamed/recorded.