Speaker Biographies
Professor Anthony Hollander, PVC for Research and Impact, University of Liverpool
As Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research & Impact and Professor of Stem Cell Biology at the University of Liverpool, Professor Anthony Hollander provides strategic leadership for the development of research policy and for ensuring impact of the University’s research programmes in Liverpool and around the world. Anthony is also responsible for commercialisation of research, for developing partnerships with companies and other external stakeholders and for the training of postgraduate research students.
His research career has focussed on the development of stem cell therapies for treating diseases of cartilage. His former University of Bristol spin-out company, Azellon Ltd, developed a stem cell treatment for torn knee cartilage and his new University of Liverpool spin-out company, TrophiCell, is developing trophic stem cell therapies for a range of chronic diseases. He was previously part of a team that created the world’s first tissue engineered airway and was former President of the International Cartilage Repair Society, Chair of Utrecht University’s International Scientific and Societal Advisory Board for Life Sciences and Chair of the Russell Group Pro-Vice-Chancellor’s Research Network.
Dr Esther Garcia-Tunon Blanca, Senior Lecturer in Materials Science and Engineering, University of Liverpool
Esther García-Tuñón (PI) is an UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Materials Science and Engineering in the School of Engineering and the Materials Innovation Factory at the University of Liverpool. Esther completed her degree in Chemical Engineering and a PhD in Materials Science from the University of Santiago de Compostela, Galicia (Spain). She moved to the UK to join the Centre for Advanced Structural Ceramics (CASC) at Imperial College London with a Barrie de la Maza fellowship, in October 2011. After six years as a postdoctoral researcher at Imperial, Esther joined the University of Liverpool in 2017 as a Lecturer. She was awarded an UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship in 2021.
Esther is also a mother to three boys! She loves spending time outdoors and by the sea with her family and friends, practicing yoga and other movement forms like Tai Chi, swimming and bouldering.
Her research aims to develop novel processing techniques to bridge the gap between materials discovery and manufacturing; to design and understand the behaviour of complex yield stress fluids for 3D printing applications; and to create hierarchical structures for health and energy applications, such as cartilage repair and water splitting.
Professor Bernadine Idowu, Professor of Biomedical Sciences, University of West London
Professor Bernadine Idowu is the Founder and Chair of the the BME Early Career Researcher Conference, which is now in its 8th year and also of the Black in Biomedical Science conference now in its 2nd year. I am a King’s College London graduate and conducted my PhD at QMUL. I am a Professor of Biomedical Sciences and Course Leader within the School of Medicine and Biosciences, UWL. I am also a visiting Senior lecturer within the Centre for Oral Clinical & Translational Sciences, King’s College London. I am an award-winning scientist, having been a recipient of the Roger Cotton Prize. I also won an African Achievers Award in 2023 for my contributions to making an Academic Impact. I am the Founder of YACnCAY, a charity which celebrates 14 years Sept 2024, I freelance for the Guardian newspaper. I am a Principal Fellow of HEA and was elected to be a member of the Royal Society of Biology. I am the Co-Chair of the Medical Research Council – Black in Biomedical Research Advisory Group who recently committed £3.7 million over three years 2023-25 to fund initiatives to address the underrepresentation of people from Black heritage backgrounds in Biomedical research.
Dr Junji Xi, Senior Lecturer in Architectural Design and Humanities, University of Liverpool
Dr Junjie Xi is a senior lecturer in architectural design and humanities at the University of Liverpool. Her research is focused on architecture and infrastructure. In particular, the railway development in China and urban sanitation in Dhaka, Bangladesh. As a result, Junjie recently published two co-authored books: China’s Railway Transformation by Routledge and Off-grid Toilets by Altrim from Barcelona. Junjie has been working with colleagues to contribute to the events celebrating Liverpool-Shanghai as a sister city for 25 years. She coordinates the international exchange for the School of Architecture and enjoys travelling by railway.
Dr Oscar Seip, Research Software Community Officer, Software Sustainability Institute
Dr Oscar Seip is based in Manchester and joined the Software Sustainability Institute in December 2023 as a Research Software Community Officer. Originally from the Netherlands, he previously worked within the fields of arts and humanities as an academic researcher and theatre producer. Additionally, Oscar holds the status of Associate Fellowship from Advance Higher Education and acquired several qualifications in software development.
Oscar has a background in the Humanities and obtained a PhD in Italian Studies from the University of Manchester and a MA in Cultural and Intellectual History from the Warburg Institute in London. He also graduated from the University of Amsterdam with a MA in Theatre Studies and a MA in Art and Performance Research Studies. Oscar’s research interests focus on the early modern use of the concept and space of the theatre to gather, organise, and present textual and visual information.
Oscar is a co-founder of the Manchester Centre for Correspondence Studies and co-organised as part of his Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Bibliotheca Hertziana - Max Planck Institute for Art History in Rome the seminar series Reflections on the Digital Turn in the Humanities and the Sciences. He has given workshops on a number of digital tools and published an article on the value of using 3D modelling and virtual reality in historical research. Finally, Oscar contributed to a report commissioned by the Software Sustainability Institute on Sustaining Digital Humanities in the UK.
Dr Fiona McBride, Senior Researcher Developer, University of Liverpool
Dr Fiona McBride leads Prosper at the University of Liverpool. She works within the Researcher Development and Culture team within the Academy. Fiona is passionate about career development for researchers, for postdocs in particular.
Dr Stefania Silvestri, Researcher Developer, University of Liverpool
Dr Stefania Silvestri is a Researcher Developer for Prosper at the University of Liverpool. Working alongside Fiona, Stefania brings her experience as an international researcher with her passion for languages and cultures and her enthusiasm to support others in developing their career potential.
Professor Georgina Endfield, APVC for Research Environment and Postgraduate Research, University of Liverpool
Professor Georgina Endfield studied for both her BSc in Geography and her MSc in Archaeology at the University of Liverpool before completing her PhD in Geography at the University of Sheffield.
I joined the School of Geography at the University of Nottingham in January 1998, starting as a lecturer and becoming a full Professor in 2012. In January 2017 I joined the University of Liverpool as APVC for Research and Impact in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and remained in this role until December 2022 when I took on my current APVC position. I have held various roles including Honorary Secretary for Research and Higher Education for the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers, 2008-2014). I was a full panel member and also an Interdisciplinary Research Advisor for UoA 14 (Geography and Environmental Studies) in REF 2021.
I am a member of the Leverhulme Trust Advisory Panel (starting 2023) and regularly participate in funding panels and moderating boards for AHRC, ESRC, NERC and UKRI. I was also a Steering Committee member of the Strategic Priorities Fund (SPF) UK Climate Resilience programme. I was elected as a Fellow of the British Academy in 2023.
Professor Louise Kenny, EPVC of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Liverpool
Professor Louise Kenny is the Executive Pro Vice Chancellor of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at the University of Liverpool; I am a founding Director of the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) funded Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT www.infantcentre.ie) and was until December 2017 Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Cork University Maternity Hospital where I worked as a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist from 2006-2018. I have a longstanding clinical and research interest in hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. My research group is supported by more than €30 million of peer reviewed funding and my work has resulted in >200 peer reviewed original papers, reviews and book chapters. I have received numerous awards for my work, most recently the prestigious title of Researcher of the Year by SFI (2015) and 2015 Irish Tatler magazine Woman of the Year Award for STEM.
Professor Katie Atkinson, Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Sustainability Research
Professor Katie Atkinson is a Professor of Computer Science, Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Sustainability Research at the University of Liverpool. I have been conducting foundational and interdisciplinary research on artificial intelligence for over 20 years, with my key areas of research being in the fields of computational models of argument and AI & Law. As Professor of Computer Science, I have published over one hundred and fifty articles in peer-reviewed conference proceedings and journals, and have also applied my work in a variety of industrial projects.
My current research is focussed on explainable AI and interdisciplinary applications of this. I develop explainable AI for modelling legal reasoning and also work on projects to bring symbolic AI to the task of digitally-supported materials discovery. I am a member of the leadership team for the UKRI-funded AIchemy hub, supporting adoption of AI for chemistry across the UK. In 2016-2017 I served as President of the International Association for AI and Law, and since 2020 I have served as a member of the Lawtech UK Panel, a government-backed initiative to help transform the UK legal sector through technology. I served on the Computer Science and Informatics sub-panel in the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021.
In 2024 I was appointed to the Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ). I also hold the roles of Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Artificial Intelligence and Law journal and President of The Foundation for Legal Knowledge-Based Systems (JURIX). Internally, I have previously served as Head of Department of Computer Science and Dean of the School of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Liverpool. My current role is focussed on leading the University's newly-established Interdisciplinary Centre for Sustainability Research. The Centre is aimed at bringing together and supporting researchers with different types of knowledge, experience and skills from across disciplines, as well as engaging and collaborating with national and international experts, to drive forward impactful research contributing to outcomes for the UN's sustainable development goals.
Dr Amy Birch, Senior Researcher Developer (Research Staff), University of Liverpool
As Senior Researcher Developer, Dr Amy Birch leads The Academy’s career and professional development programme for all staff who research at the University. While I have a focus on supporting postdoctoral researchers, research assistants and early career research fellows, I also work with the Organisational Development team to support the development of managers of researchers and established researchers.
I have 11 years’ experience working with researchers in UK higher education institutions, having been a postdoctoral researcher and MRes/PhD supervisor for four years before moving into researcher development. I am an EMCC Coach Practitioner, Resilient Leaders Consultant, and Certified Associate in Project Management. I am passionate about ensuring equitable and inclusive development for all staff who research, and seek to create environments and opportunities that empower individuals to succeed using various activities and experiences.