Ian Rooney is the Director of Estates and Facilities for Durham University. He has over 28 years’ experience in estate and facilities management across a variety of sectors including the NHS and Higher Education.  
Ian is a member of the Durham University’s Senior Leadership team and has direct responsibility for the development of the University’s Estates Strategy and Masterplan which supports the University Strategy. He has a proven track record of the development and delivery of strategic and operational Estates programmes across a range of completed environments.

Ian is passionate about the contribution that Estates and Facilities make to the University community and how the estate and data can be used as a catalyst for wider change and transformation.  

As the Director of Estates at the University of Oxford, I play an active role in the strategic planning and operational delivery of the university's world-class estate. I have 28 years of Senior NHS estate management experience and 10 years of Russell Group HE Director experience. My role focuses on sustainability and innovation, with a commitment to net zero carbon strategies. I manage campus environments, from heritage sites to new builds, through asset management and IoT deployment, supporting world-class research. I have a focus on the digital estates and am responsible for a unique portfolio of heritage buildings, enhancing the university experience for students, staff, and visitors.

I have significant experience in Campus Master planning. My career is marked by successful project delivery, efficiency improvements, and a dedication to excellence. I am also a Professorial Fellow and governing body member at Jesus College Oxford, a visiting lecturer, author and a trustee for a conservation charity, and a regular judge for various industry awards. 

My legacy includes the delivery of a £1bn capital program at the University of Birmingham, a photographic summary of completed projects can be seen at https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/university/campus and includes the planning and delivery of a new 50,000 student campus in Dubai and numerous award winning new build and refurbishment projects.

As Head of Higher Education and Student Experience, my role is to ensure Jisc’s HE strategy meets the needs of our higher education members and UK wide funders. I have worked in the education sector since 1993 and have extensive experience in the use of digital to enhance and enrich the student experience. I have been a CIO, a Teacher, a Project Director, TEL manager, Libraries Manager, an IT director, and a Senior Manager. I have contributed and managed a range of projects including smart and intelligent campus, shared services, digital transformation and student mobility.

I am the Site Manager of the Institute of Cancer Research’s Chelsea site, however I started my working life as a lab scientist. I have a degree in Applied Biology and a PhD in Cancer Cell Biology and started work at the ICR as a postdoctoral scientist doing research into the molecular structure of proteins involved in cancer. I moved from research into laboratory management, then into facilities management. My focus is to ensure that our site supports the needs of our scientific colleagues in terms of space, equipment, business continuity, and scientific facilities.

As Head of Estates Digital and Insight at the University of Glasgow, David leads the development of digital capabilities and data driven intelligence to inform investment decisions, advance sustainability objectives, and support long term estate planning. He works closely with colleagues across the institution to ensure digital estate developments are fit for purpose and effectively support the University’s core missions of teaching and research. His focus on innovation, insight, and digital maturity positions the University’s estate to meet emerging needs and underpin the University’s ambitions in an increasingly digital landscape.

At Edge Hill, Jon has led soft FM service reviews, introduced customer journey mapping and real-time insight reporting, and contributed to award-winning student outcomes. Jon was named AUDE Emerging Talent Award winner in 2024. He is also a Trustee Director of Oldham Athletic Community Trust and Head of Support Stages and Customer Experience at The Brit Fest music festival.

Speaker bio to be announced shortly.

Graham is responsible for the estate, digital, libraries, commercial services and climate action teams at Cardiff Metropolitan University.

He has worked in client and consulting roles within the Public and Private sectors, across master planning, capital projects delivery and estate management ranging from maintenance programmes up to £3Bn projects, and across multiple industries including Higher Education, Healthcare, Leisure, Commercial Offices, Retail, Residential, Infrastructure, Aviation and Transportation. 

His capital projects experience ranges from work on Heathrow Airport Terminal 5, to supercomputing, clinical research and regeneration schemes to leading the first development at the Roman Baths in a generation. 

He is a Chartered Institute of Building Client Steering Group Member and Client Champion.

Starting his career in commodity trading and asset optimisation, Adam has over 23-years of UK Trading and Energy Risk Management experience. Adam made the switch from Wholesale trading to Energy Retail in 2012, developing energy trading and risk management products for the I&C sector. 

Through the last 6-years of his career with EDF, Adam established the largest renewable offtake portfolio in the UK – including several notable Corporate PPAs. 

Since joining The Energy Consortium (TEC) as MD in March 2022, Adam has developed enhanced energy risk management and reporting solutions for a growing portfolio of members from across the Higher Education and UK Museums sectors, focussing on products and services which reduce cost, consumption, and carbon.

With over two decades of experience shaping digital futures across academia and the boardroom, Dr Brauer works at the intersection of research, enterprise transformation, human behaviour, and responsible AI. He co-founded boutique strategic advisory and sandbox-as-a-service startup Symmetry AI in 2022 and, following its acquisition in 2025, now serves as Chief AI Officer at FSP, designing scalable AI capabilities for high-trust and regulated sectors. He is Global Chair of AI and UK Chair of Innovation at Edelman, Global Strategy Officer on technology-led energy transition at the World Economic Forum, and is still a jobbing academic one day a week as Senior Lecturer and Director of Innovation at Goldsmiths, University of London.

Dr Mark Carrigan FRSA FHEA is a Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Manchester, where he co-leads the Digital Education Manchester group and serves as an AI Fellow at the Institute for Teaching and Learning. His work addresses higher education as a critical site where the social and cultural dynamics of AI unfold through practical challenges. His recent work includes Generative AI for Academics (Sage, 2024) and Social Media for Academics (Sage, 2nd edition), alongside eight other books.

Caroline Criado Perez is a best-selling, award-winning writer, broadcaster, and feminist campaigner. She is the author of Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, which explores how gender-biased data affects research, policy, and organisational decision-making. Her work has influenced government, corporate policy, and product design worldwide. Caroline’s campaigns have put a woman on UK banknotes, introduced a “report abuse” button on Twitter, and secured the first female statue in Parliament Square, London. Named OBE in 2015, she is widely recognised for promoting equality and inclusion.