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Professor Kevin Singh is an architect whose career in has spanned over 25 years. He has extensive experience in both higher education institutions and in the industry, as the head of his own practice.
Kevin joined the Manchester School of Architecture as its Head in September 2020. The Manchester School of Architecture is distinctive as it is a joint school between Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of Manchester.
We sat down with Kevin to discuss the challenges and rewards that come with his role, how design has changed over recent years and his advice for future architects.
Technically, I am in a Head of Department role, similar to one you would find in many Universities. What is unique about the Manchester School of Architecture is that it sits across two institutions; the University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University, making it a wide-ranging role that allows me to interact and collaborate with talented academics in both institutions.
Perrett Laver prepared me brilliantly for this, explaining the equivalences between the institutions, supporting me through the process right up until I found out I had been chosen for the job. It’s a real honour to have been given the responsibility to run such a prestigious and renowned institution.
I started in the role whilst the world was still in the midst of Covid. A view had swiftly been taken that all teaching would move online, which meant that I didn’t meet any of my students or team in person throughout my first year in the job.
I found this challenging for a number of reasons, not least because I am at my best when I’m in the room. My predecessor had also headed up the School for around a decade before leaving, so it was almost impossible to build up a comparable level of familiarity. All I can say is that it’s fantastic to be back in the room again.
Despite those initial obstacles, I’ve felt hugely appreciated by the University and feel that my opinions are truly valued. I couldn’t have asked for better support from the University and it’s great that they trust my instincts and allow me the room and opportunity to follow them.
This has been reflected in how I’ve helped to elevate and promote people in my team. I’ve been passionate about helping the School realise and reward some of its untapped potential from day one. It has been immensely satisfying to witness talented individuals progress in their career and have their voices heard, especially when they are not necessarily the loudest in the room.
Climate change is a global issue that affects everyone and we’re seeing a huge range of industries react and adapt to changing needs. An example of how this has been reflected in architectural practice is through a concerted effort to reuse materials where possible and work with what’s already there, which is what we term ‘adaptive reuse’.
At the Manchester School of Architecture, we’ve recently launched the MA Architecture and Adaptive Reuse programme, which is solely dedicated to reworking existing buildings. Whilst there are limitations to what you can do to change the aesthetic of a structure, it’s exciting to witness a new style of architecture being established.
A project where sustainable design has been embedded in the design process is the Battersea Power Station development. It was brilliant to see how the building’s structure has been reused, as well as how the surrounding area has been regenerated.
Sustainable practice is both inspiring and creative. I’m excited to see it continue to be embedded in design in the years to come.
Manchester School of Architecture is ranked amongst the best in the world and has a very diverse student body, with around 50 per cent of them being international students.
All of our students are incredibly able and dedicated, but we have recently added a Foundation course to the School, which acts as a ‘safety net’ and creates opportunity for students who may have been poorly advised at School, or who changed their mind about their career path.
It’s allowed us to introduce a whole cohort of individuals to architecture, who may not have got there otherwise.
I have also been working with and advising the estates team on a new library, always bearing facilities in mind that may benefit people who are working jobs alongside their studies and need a place to store their uniform, or have a shower.
We’ve also thought of people who may not be able to afford the technology needed to complete their studies to a standard they are capable of, doing our utmost to make the space as welcoming to a diverse community and as affordable as possible.
My first piece of advice is that you have to be passionate. It takes a lot of time and dedication to become an architect and it’s important to be committed to and patient with the process.
My first piece of advice is that you have to be passionate. It takes a lot of time and dedication to become an architect and it’s important to be committed to and patient with the process.
Lastly, I’d say it’s important not to make too many comparisons. I’ve noticed an upswing in the number of young architecture students are comparing themselves with others, which can be partially attributed to the rise of social media.
John Brewer is Chair of the National Football Museum (NFM), England’s premier football museum. John began his career with the FA as Head of Human Performance and was the first sports scientist to work in English football. He has led a distinguished career across a variety of sports leadership positions including Chair of the London Regional Sports Board, a Board member at UK Anti-Doping, Chair of the British Handball Association and Chair of British Ski and Snowboard
I’m chair of the National Football Museum, working in a voluntary role. My first job in 1988 was in football, so I’m excited to return to a leadership role in the sport that kicked off my career. The National Football Museum has a great reputation and there is a lot of work to do. As well as the day-to-day activities supporting the non-executive team and CEO, my first priority has been reviewing the governance structure. To use a football analogy, I serve as the manager of the team and bring in new players to the squad. Since I started in February, we’ve appointed nine new trustees with various skills and backgrounds. That’s the starting point, which will then evolve into reviewing the subcommittee structure to provide the board and executive team with the support they need.
From a governance perspective, the biggest priority for us is recovering post-COVID. We took a huge hit in income generation from visitors and sales during the pandemic as we lost almost all of our entrance fees and associated secondary spend. Right now, we need to get people back through the doors and show why the museum is great value for money. The other big priority area is museum accreditation. We are applying to the Arts Council to officially become one of their “National Portfolio” museums, and this is crucial for our profile and reputation and to unlock future funding.
I believe that the museum has huge untapped potential. We are a national museum based in Manchester, but we have the potential for global reach particularly through the use of digital technology. Whether that’s looking at memorabilia or listening to stories, providing a virtual experience can encourage people across the world to pay a visit from the comfort of their own home. Right now, the British football brand is enormous, you only have to look at countries like Japan and China, where people are football mad, to see the appetite for British football.
As already mentioned, our other big goal is museum accreditation. The National Football Museum is a great example of how we can widen access to arts and culture, as it attracts people that may not necessarily be interested in a more traditional museum or art gallery. Ultimately, it’s football people that want to visit, and we’re really proud of the fact we welcome people from all walks of life. Over the next few years, we want the museum to be a great place for people to come and also a great place to work by putting our staff at the heart of what we do.
In 2009, I was fortunate to be asked if I would take over as chair of the British Handball Association. To be honest, at the time handball was a sport I’d only ever watched a handful of times. The London 2012 Olympics were coming up and we had the opportunity to send two teams for the very first time as GB was the host nation. However, a lot of funding had been pulled and the sport was in disarray, so I was asked to come in with the aim of getting two teams into the Olympics. We had to find a way to train the players overseas, fund training camps and ultimately show the British Olympic Association (BOA) that we were credible enough to take part in the Olympic Games.
After Eddie the Eagle at the Calgary Olympics, the BOA, and the funders of elite sport, UK Sport, had a “no-compromise” policy to only fund and take people to an Olympics who would represent Britain with distinction. It was only in the early part of 2012, just a few months until the Olympics began, that we found out we had achieved our goal.
So I think my greatest achievement was sitting in the Copper Box at London 2012 to watch both the men’s and women’s teams take to the Olympic arena for the first time in the history of British handball. What’s more, we gave around 40 young people the chance to become Olympians. I know that without the structure and discipline we put in place in those preceding years, none of it would have been possible.
When I worked for the English Football Association, the women’s team had a totally separate governing body. They had to scrape for every penny of income that they could get and effectively self-fund their travel and accommodation. Fortunately, people with a little more foresight in English football brought the men’s and women’s teams together under one umbrella. Similarly, many other areas of the sport such as disability football were brought under one body. Having that overarching support and inclusivity in governance is crucial to increase funding and enable every area of football to grow.
Women’s football is a fantastic advert for how the sport has grown. In the recent FA Cup final, there were over 50,000 fans in attendance. Alongside women’s football, it’s important to grow all areas of the sport such as the many versions of football for people with a disability; inclusivity is critical, and I am proud that we reflect this at the Museum. Widening participation at the recreational level will make sport more inclusive, and inspire people of all ages and abilities.
When I took the role of Chair of the London Regional Sports Board, the former head of Sport England Derek Mapp said to me the most important thing you can do for the first few weeks is to listen. Talk to people who are part of an organisation, take the pulse of the organisation and find out what makes it tick before you start to take major decisions.
In terms of giving advice, I would say there’s only a small number of people who get to the top. Be prepared to work on your weaknesses – to continue the football metaphor, there’s a natural tendency to think “I’m good at crosses” and then neglect to work on tackling or tracking back. You have to embrace those weaknesses just as much as your strengths.
This applies to every aspect of life – whether you’re participating in elite sports, recreational sports or doing something entirely different such as coaching. Even if you’re not going to compete at the highest level, carve out your niche. Working in sports science, I was hugely fortunate to be part of the support teams at cricket and football World Cups. In sports governance, I worked at an Olympics. Whichever career you choose, find that niche where you can excel and grow.
One of the most unfortunate effects of the pandemic was that it separated communities. I believe sport has a big role to play in bringing communities back together. It can also break down barriers. A great legacy of the 2012 London Olympics was to give exposure to so many sports that weren’t necessarily in the public eye.
After the Olympics, handball became one of the fastest growing sports in schools. Local authorities began to invest in facilities for lesser-known sports such as such as BMX and rock climbing. We’re now seeing sport growing horizontally in terms of opportunities, and also vertically in terms of the number of people participating in sport from diverse backgrounds.
As a leader and pioneer in her field, her research group centres on ethical and social issues in modern technology such as artificial intelligence, tissue engineering and stem cell research.
We sat down with Annelien to discuss her role as Rector Magnificus, the latest research in her field, the value of interdisciplinary education to solve societal issues and what advice she would give to women in STEM.
As Rector Magnificus, I sit on the executive board at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, home to 33,000 students and 4,000 employees. I’m responsible for educational curriculums, research and impact programmes, the library, and science education, as well as the social sciences, economics, business, law and medical schools and their scientific staff.
In my daily work, I collaborate with Deans, academic directors and many other staff members. It is a challenging job and there is always so much happening, but I love the diversity of the work.
A quote that has always stuck with me is “you cannot be what you cannot see”. Being the first female in this role can help people to consciously and unconsciously recognise that women should be in these positions. The percentage of female professors in the Netherlands is still relatively low, around 25% at my university, so in response we have developed an active policy on promoting and recruiting female associates and full professors.
But I’m not concerned about building an all-female team, rather more diverse teams – whether that’s gender, cultural or neuro diversity. It’s no secret that diverse teams make better organisations. It’s also important to address what diverse female leadership can look like. For example, I have a young son who I need to take to kindergarten. Within my position, I want to show people you can take time to do these things and still be dedicated to your job.
There is a stereotype that to be a famous professor, you must be published in influential journals or invent something unique. My ambition is to break the stereotype that there is only one way to become a professor or for any other career.
I aim to guide Erasmus University Rotterdam into becoming an impact-driven university, where every student has the skills to become transition leaders. This means instead of looking at more traditional career opportunities, our students are given the tools to tackle the economic, societal and environmental issues facing the world.
As a professor of biomedical ethics, I’ve seen first-hand that innovative technologies are ready to be implemented, but people and cultures are not ready to embrace them. The early developers of biomedical technologies or artificial intelligence, for example, are rarely conscious of its societal impacts.
But if you collaborate with people from the humanities and social science, it will not only encourage responsible innovation but also increase the chance that this idea will actually integrate into society.
Another research area that fascinates me is the digital revolution. The pandemic has given us a chance to reflect on where we can improve our digital and hybrid offering. Teachers can provide short video clips for students to watch at home, for example, rather than just sitting in lectures.
The time in class can be used for dialogue and impact learning through flipped classroom concepts. In this way, technology can be a huge force for good in education.
Throughout my career, I have found scientific research really exciting. I’ve never been a specialist, however, and my passion to reform the university system away from a focus on specialism has shaped my current work as Rector Magnificus. At the same time, I’ve always been politically active. For the last seven years I’ve been a member of the Dutch senate, serving as floor leader representing what is now the second biggest party in government.
My political work has shown me that there is so much to learn outside of what usually gets taught at university, for example the power of management and negotiation. I have been serving on the advisory board of the Amsterdam Medical Centre and the Metropole Orchestra. I might not seem a conventional fit for these positions but knowing how decisions are made and how to connect different worlds together continues to shape my work today.
Over the next few years, I see my role as ushering a transition that will futureproof the university. What is unique about universities is that they produce the knowledge, tools and insights to tackle big societal problems. This means we need to build our interdisciplinary curriculum so students develop skills not only useful in their university courses, but also in challenges outside the classroom. For example, we have developed a third-year bachelor programme, an impact learning course, where the students go out to real-world organisations. They will build the skills and insights to become the next generation of leaders solving the next big business and societal challenges.
The best advice I can give is don’t be afraid to go off the beaten track. I come from a medical family but instead of going down that route, I developed a line of research in a pioneering field of ethics in technology. Throughout my career, I’ve made a real effort to work in places with potential and growth opportunities. Getting out of your comfort zone might seem inconvenient, but there are so many opportunities for you once you get there.
She has a lifelong passion for improving human health and has spent her career finding ways to deliver positive impact for patients and their families.
We sat down with Charmaine to discuss her role at the BHF, how the organisation responded to the challenges of the pandemic and what advice she’d give to the leaders of the future.
Day-to-day my job is incredibly diverse, but at its heart it’s about ensuring we have clear direction and ambition to make a life-saving difference to people with heart and circulatory diseases.
I love the job because of the talented and passionate people I get to work with and the impact I see we make on people’s lives every day. We back the world’s best scientists to carry out cutting-edge research and develop incredibly innovative programmes of work. Having trained a scientist, I have always been passionate about the power of research to save and improve lives.
The BHF is also very important to me on a personal level. My family have felt the devastation of losing loved ones to heart attacks, strokes and vascular dementia, so it’s inspiring to lead a team that is making breakthroughs to help people like my own family.
The BHF turned 60 in 2020, and there is no doubt the pandemic is the biggest challenge we have ever faced. But I’m immensely proud of how our BHF family responded.
Just one month after I returned to the BHF, and one week before lockdown, we set four simple priorities that guided us at every turn. To be there for people with heart and circulatory disease, to protect our research activities in any way we could, to protect funding for our charitable work, and support our people through the pandemic. Although we couldn’t have imagined what was to come, this focus really led us through.
Today we know we’ve supported over 10 million people who’ve turned to our Coronavirus Hub for information. We flexed to allow our researchers and colleagues to return to the NHS front line. And, at breath-taking speed, alongside the National Institute of Health research (NIHR), we set up flagship research programmes that have helped better understand why people with heart and circulatory diseases are at higher risk from COVID-19.
Our supporters, volunteers and colleagues have also done an incredible job to power our recovery since we reopened our 700 shops and restarted many of our much loved fundraising events in April 2021.
All of their work has helped us not only protect our £440 million of current research commitments, but also keep our door open for new funding. This has been critical in supporting the UK’s pipeline of talented cardiovascular scientists and maintaining progress towards life-saving discoveries.
I’ve also been inspired by the extent of collaboration across the research and health sectors, and hope we get to bottle that spirit for the future.
With the backing of our Trustees, I was determined to protect our transformational Big Beat Challenge Award through the pandemic storm of uncertainty. This is a single £30 million global research award – the biggest we’ve ever given – that aims to make a transformative leap forward in an area of heart and circulatory disease research. We’ve shortlisted four truly ground-breaking projects, and hope to announce the winner later in 2022.
Personally, I am fascinated by the potential of data to transform prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The speed that the field is moving is inspirational, and I love seeing the approach our BHF Data Science Centre is taking. I am also particularly interested in the genetics of disease, and how we can leverage genetic tools to make a transformational difference for people. I’m so curious to see where research into both these areas will take us.
I started my career as a neuroscientist at University College London, and then had the privilege of working at the Welcome Trust before leaving the lab to join the BHF.
Over more than a decade, and in a number of roles, I learnt so much from around our organisation before joining the Executive team in 2012. During this time the BHF underwent a phenomenal period of growth, which means we today have 4000 colleagues and 20000 volunteers. I can only hope that I gave as much as I got from it.
I left to join the world-leading Institute of Cancer Research as Chief Operating Officer in 2015, and it was a privilege to support a community of incredible scientists, and help progress The London Cancer Hub, Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery, and also to be a Governor at the Royal Marsden NHS Trust.
My decision to return to the BHF in 2020 can be put down to what I call ‘the BHF magic’. It is a world class organisation powered by its collective determination to make a real difference.
The organisation has a fantastic culture, which was truly showcased during the pandemic, combining a huge ‘can-do’ attitude alongside scientific excellence and health expertise.
Whilst we take heart and circulatory disease seriously, the team loves having fun as we work. Some of the times have been tough, some exciting, but it has always been a pleasure to lead a team that has truly risen to meet every challenge.
My advice would be to do what you love. If we’ve learnt one thing from the pandemic it is that life is precious. Make choices to do things you are passionate about, that inspire you, that spark your curiosity – and the rest will fall into place. Energy and passion go hand in hand with excelling in a role.
Another piece of advice would be that having mentors can be incredibly valuable. I have found having people you trust who can really, really challenge you will keep you moving forward and ensure you’re true to yourself.
And finally, get feedback. It can be hard to ask for, and sometimes hard to hear, but there is always something to learn from it. Hearing it with an open mind is so important for growth and for a leader, I would go as far as to say it is essential.
Michelle has worked within multiple non-profit, NGO and Fortune 50 organisations, including board positions at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the Mental Health Association and TEEN LINE.
After she joined Movember, we sat down with Michelle to discuss her ambition at the organisation, the mental health challenges exacerbated by the pandemic and the importance of driving recruitment efforts around our wellbeing.
Movember is ultimately attempting to change the face of men’s mental health. They fund and develop programmes centred around social connection, and helping men have difficult but important conversations.
But it’s not just about creating a community of support around men – it’s about equipping them with the tools and confidence to ask help for themselves and open up to their friends and family.
One of the organisation’s challenges is that men tend to live quite strictly by their ‘gender roles’ – displaying a need to uphold an image of being strong and always in control.
At Movember, we want to redefine this narrative and create a safe space for men to let their guard down and show their vulnerability.
Over the next year or so, I’m tasked with operationalising our programmes that are currently global and tailoring them so we can best support men in the US.
It’s such a unique market, in terms of the challenges that our healthcare system faces and the stigma around mental health in certain communities, so my priority will be helping these neglected groups tap into existing resources.
While we are continuing to develop programming throughout our active markets, my specific position was carved out to respond to the needs of the US market. In our other markets, there is notably better access to care and a social safety net which the US doesn’t have.
Even where there is sufficient access, there are financial limits that may still cause setbacks – we’re keen to close this gap and scale our support network.
Right now, it’s pivotal that we create support networks around men. Generally, women have an easier time of creating social circles, while the pandemic has been a particularly isolating time for men. Feelings of loneliness, disconnection and not feeling a part of anything in life can sadly lead to feelings of depression and anxiety.
We know that over 700,000 men a year die by suicide globally [World Health Organisation] – this is a significant issue and will continue to be unless we put those support networks in place.
What really drives me in my work and what attracted me to Movember was that I have my own history of losses – I am a suicide survivor, losing four people to suicide, including my father who was a mental health professional.
We know that when one person dies of suicide, six people are affected. It’s not uncommon that you sit in a room and ask: ‘who knows someone or has been affected by suicide?’ and nearly everyone raises their hand. So why aren’t we talking about it?
Movember is specifically focused on prevention and early intervention, so building in supports early on for men. That can be as easy as checking in with people in your network.
If you see someone who no longer wants to go out and do things or comes across reclusive – those are signs that you should have a conversation with them.
What’s key is you don’t need to feel like you have all the right things to say, or the solution. Just starting the conversation gives them permission to talk about something they are struggling with but that they didn’t want to raise themselves.
They always say – there’s a reason we have two ears and one mouth! You can be that person who’s there to listen and spark a conversation that might have been otherwise difficult to initiate.
It’s so important that we create our programming through a gendered lens, not a one-size-fits-all approach.
We need to tailor it to the needs of men and communicate in an authentic, non-threatening way so that men will actually use it, take the advice on board and create action around it.
Movember is specifically focused on prevention and early intervention, so building in supports early on for men. That can be as easy as checking in with people in your network.
If you see someone who no longer wants to go out and do things or comes across reclusive – those are signs that you should have a conversation with them. What’s key is you don’t need to feel like you have all the right things to say, or the solution.
Just starting the conversation gives them permission to talk about something they are struggling with but that they didn’t want to raise themselves.
They always say – there’s a reason we have two ears and one mouth! You can be that person who’s there to listen and spark a conversation that might have been otherwise difficult to initiate.
With over 30 years’ experience in law, technology and business consulting with global firms such as EY, Sanjay Bhandari is an expert in innovation, technology and transformation.
Sanjay is currently pursuing a portfolio career consisting of a number of adviser, trustee and Board roles. He is a trustee of a social mobility charity Aleto Foundation, is Chair of the football anti-discrimination charity, Kick It Out and was recently appointed as a Non-Executive Director of the Lawn Tennis Association. Sanjay entered the Perrett Laver and Sport England’s Diversity in Sport Leadership Programme, to enter the next phase of his career and take on his first board role with GreaterSport.
One of my mentors told me that there are three phases to life: ‘learning, earning and returning’. I was ready to explore the ‘returning’ aspect of my trajectory and to focus on giving back and exploring an area that I was truly passionate about. I have always been interested in sport and activity but had never been involved in the sector – this role gave me that exciting opportunity.
I had never had a board role before, but Perrett Laver gave me the insight that it is all about presenting your skills and what value you can add, rather than just your experience. They also showed me how best to shape my CV to appeal to a board role – it requires a completely different mindset of looking at how you can present your best values. Perrett Laver encouraged me to think about what value I could add, and how I could tell that story in the most compelling way.
I’ve been in my GreaterSport role for nearly two years now. In that time, I have learnt so much in terms of understanding the way a local active partnership works in the context of local stakeholders and governments.
Joining GreaterSport, I thought there would be a need to be insightful from minute one, knowing all the detail, but I’ve learnt that my role is more for the difference that my perspective can bring, or the patterns I can identify. I am confident that GreaterSport has been making great strides, and I look forward to helping the executive drive this progress even further.
Always do your research on the organisation, the area in which they operate and the issues that matter most to them. I would also look at opportunities to solve problems creatively as a Board member, rather than get bogged down in semantics.
Ultimately, however, my greatest piece of advice is to ask questions. Your confidence increases hugely when you realise that you do not have to be an expert in everything, but rather you should ask good questions to fully understand what problems need to be solved.
I am not the only non-white member on the board at Greater Sport, which puts us as an organisation on the right end of the spectrum in terms of representation. We have the right strategy in place, and it is now about executing that strategy. Sport has definitely moved higher up on the agenda and people are taking more notice of campaigns that the local active partnerships are seeking to drive.
Board diversity encourages different perspectives. Sometimes, simply by changing language you can challenge established perspectives.
For example, minority communities are often referred to as ‘hard to reach’ communities. But they are not ‘hard to reach’, they are ‘hardly reached’. They have always been there. It is just that organisations may not have been taking the right approach to engage them.
The greatest asset of having people from under-represented or minority communities on a board is that it starts conversations that can sometimes be uncomfortable. I see it as part of my role to provide a shift in perspective but to do that in a way that is easily received.
Leading organisations need to take a lead and ensure they reflect the communities they represent – from the boardroom and the c-suite to delivery teams. Targets, mentoring, leadership programmes and all of the usual organisational D&I interventions help. But it mostly comes down to determined and visible leadership from the top.
That then needs to translate into the outcomes of the organisations mission. Our mission at GreaterSport is about getting people moving. The biggest indicator of life outcomes, including activity levels, is being born into relative poverty. People born poorer have worse education, career and health outcomes. Relative poverty also disproportionately impacts people from under-represented and minority communities and they are statistically over-represented in lower socio-economic groups. So, the barriers facing minority groups intersect – that can relate to ethnicity, culture and an individual’s socioeconomic circumstance – and issues faced by such minority groups range from access to transport to nutrition.
Leading organisations need to take a lead and ensure they reflect the communities they represent – from the boardroom and the c-suite to delivery teams. Targets, mentoring, leadership programmes and all of the usual organisational D&I interventions help. But it mostly comes down to determined and visible leadership from the top.
That then needs to translate into the outcomes of the organisations mission. Our mission at GreaterSport is about getting people moving. The biggest indicator of life outcomes, including activity levels, is being born into relative poverty. People born poorer have worse education, career and health outcomes. Relative poverty also disproportionately impacts people from under-represented and minority communities and they are statistically over-represented in lower socio-economic groups. So, the barriers facing minority groups intersect – that can relate to ethnicity, culture and an individual’s socioeconomic circumstance – and issues faced by such minority groups range from access to transport to nutrition.
Following a recruitment process led by Perrett Laver, Dan was appointed as The Wildlife Conservation Society’s (WCS) first Executive Director of Forests and Climate Change.
We sat down with Dan to discuss his career so far, his new role with WCS and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the fight against climate change.
Fundamentally, climate science has greatly improved. Having said that, even 30 years ago it was clear that human behaviour was driving detrimental climate change. Tackling climate change 30 years ago would have been a less daunting challenge but, globally, leaders in government and the private sector mostly chose to ignore the science.
At the time, their perception was that the current cost of action – for which they would be held responsible — outweighed the future cost of inaction, which would be someone else’s problem. Fast forward to today, and the size and cost of the problem have grown — and it now belongs to all of us.
Climate change is no longer an academic discussion but rather a lived reality; all over the world, people are directly affected by climate related disasters such as fires, flooding and heatwaves which simply cannot be ignored.
Undoubtedly, these events are concentrating attention from both the private sector and government. Ignoring the growing crisis is no longer an option. Unfortunately, the challenges only continue to grow more urgent.
I have to be optimistic. We can still achieve a lot of mitigation and a lot of adaptation — enough to make a positive difference for most people and most of the natural world — but we need to act now, in this decade, to make important structural changes. Climate disasters have made people sit up and seriously listen to warnings from experts on the subject. Remember, it took a global pandemic to get the world to listen to public health experts.
The US election result has also made me much more optimistic about the direction of climate policy, both in the US and globally. That’s one good example of how everyone can make choices that directly impact the fight against climate change.
Our global financial system treats these assets as if they were free and infinite. Global climate change has taught us that they’re not, so we need to adapt. If nothing else, the Covid-19 pandemic has made it clear that people can and must adapt to survive and thrive, and that government, the private sector and civil society can work together to bring solutions forward.
That’s a very big question with more than one answer. People often expect a single silver bullet solution but unfortunately that does not exist. This is a complex problem. Recently, we have seen extraordinary success in the development of Covid vaccines through combined government and private sector action.
We need to apply similar approaches to tackling climate change. A lot of the progress we’ve seen in the renewable energy sector has been driven by public sector support for private sector innovation. We need more of that in other climate arenas, with a strong focus on incentivizing public benefits.
As WCS’s first Executive Director of Forests and Climate Change I am of course focused on the potential of forests to contribute to climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.
The importance of forests for climate regulation is massively underappreciated. Globally, forests are each year absorbing between a quarter and a third of the greenhouse gas emissions that people put into the atmosphere
We should be investing in growing and protecting this “carbon sponge,” but instead private investment, sometimes publicly subsidized, is more often directed toward activities that eat away at the edges of the sponge, reducing its size and effectiveness through deforestation for low-productivity agriculture or land speculation.
As a result, the economic importance, investment opportunities, and job growth potential inherent in forest protection remain mostly unrealized. There’s a large and varied portfolio of critical investments – in recognizing the rights of indigenous and other traditional peoples who protect and sustainably manage extensive forest areas, in economic development based on biodiversity, and in critical “ecosystem services.”
Beyond the “carbon sponge” those services include other important climate regulation functions like buffering temperature extremes and, perhaps most importantly, supplying water for agricultural and urban consumption.
WCS has done a lot of great work that I’m hoping to build on with my new colleagues. Their long term, on-the-ground conservation programs are a remarkable asset in their own right, and also offer opportunities to leverage global impact. WCS and others in the Forests for Life Partnership have prioritised the protection of intact forest landscapes, and we need to make that priority a reality.
That will require connecting information, opportunities, and insights across local, national, regional and global venues to design effective new modalities that work for people on the ground and add up to large-scale impact.
Now is undeniably the time for action. Leaders need to drive action on climate change and stress that cost of inaction is too high to wait for perfect solutions. If we simply continue to prioritise conversations about shrinking the margins of uncertainty on the science or endless dialogues about big ideas unrooted in lived experience, we will lose the opportunities we still actually have to make real changes that will make real differences for people and our planet.
Kate has a remarkable record in human rights advocacy, having worked for some of the world’s most prominent human rights organisations.
A fellow at the Carr Centre for Human Rights Policy, Harvard Kennedy School since 2020, Kate also served as the United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2014 to 2019, as well as the Assistant Secretary General and Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund from 2012 to 2014. Prior to these roles, she served as Executive Deputy Secretary General at Amnesty International, between 2000 and 2009.
At IPPF, I have the privilege of serving as Chair of the Board of Trustees. I am one of fifteen trustees, six of us are appointed externally to IPPF, whilst the remainder come from IPPF member associations in the more than 140 countries where we are present. I am also enormously proud that IPPF ensured that a third of our trustees are aged under 25. It is our honour as an organisation to serve sexual and reproductive health and rights through service provision and programming, as well as via policy advice, research, and public advocacy.
The role of the IPPF Board is varied. We must ensure that the organization stays on mission, that we are strongly and visibly aligned to the commitments that we make publicly and that we are accountable not only for the money that donors invest is in us, but for the impact we have – or don’t have – on the lives of those whom we serv. We must be sure we are complaint of course with the relevant regulations. Most critically our role is to ensure that we are delivering now, and in the future too, for the people who are most in need of access to sexual and reproductive health and rights but who face the gravest barriers to that access
I want to be passionate about human rights in whatever task I am given, wherever I work. I have tried hard to make rights my values’ “compass”. That has converted into a persistent awareness that rights belong also in the private, intimate, and domestic domains.
What drew me to IPPF was that continued aspiration, that, even in the most intimate of domains, there should be dignity, safety, protection, enjoyment, and pleasure for each and every one of us, to the exclusion of none of us, in the interests of all of us. Once that passion has got hold of you, it doesn’t let you go!
First up, because of our specific responsibility, and directly important to us as a board, was the safety and security of our frontline staff and volunteers. We worked with our Director General to ensure that they had what was needed to safely continue their work where that was feasible, and to deliver services even in the most difficult of settings.
I am amazed by the commitment, and frankly, courage, of our national associations and our staff and volunteers, the world over, who even in the face of the pandemonium of pandemic, worked so hard to continue to deliver essential services safely wherever they could. Thanks to that commitment and technical expertise, IPPF was able to adjust quickly, including by repurposing our services to work better for people who were now housebound.
We moved to virtual consultations and to sharing more information, assets and commodities remotely. My colleagues did all that they could to continue our services, whilst keeping everyone as safe as we could. The Board was able to monitor that delivery closely, thanks to the leadership of our Director General and his team, and, as a result, we could also report on that delivery accurately and impartially to our donors and partners.
I am very proud to say that these responses worked remarkably well. It truly is a tribute to our people on the frontline, and not to people such as me – to people sitting in board meetings!
But because I do sit on the Board I had the privilege of witnessing, with deep admiration, the adaptability of midwives, doctors, health workers and activists who were so determined to continue their work in support of people – youth, women, LGBTIQ+ key among them – who are most in need of access to contraception, sexual health advice, safe abortion, commodities for safe sex and so on.
It was just extraordinary to witness continued provision of those services, despite all barriers and in the face of all the anxieties and sorrows too that COVID has brought us all. It was just incredible. And I want to thank donors and supporters for the flexibility they showed, allowing us to re-programme and providing additional financing where possible.
I believe that the nexus between freedom and equality is important in every realm of life – that is dignity’s pivot point. Without freedom – viable choices, informed consent, affordable access – and absent equality and non-discrimination in the intimate domain too – in regards to gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age, disability etc. – we all are diminished but many suffer greatly. And if you are on the wrong end of power’s callous hierarchies, deprivation of freedom, and denial of equality, manifests variously as sexual violence, sexual exploitation, sexual injury, and deprivation of joy, of pleasure and of loving, consensual intimacy.
Such discrimination and exclusion exact utterly unsustainable human costs, notably on the lives of women and girls, refugees and migrants, the poor and marginalized – frankly, an unconscionable cost on anyone whose identity is deemed to fall outside the tiny, narrow, boxes of privilege that dominant culture constructs for itself and imposes on the rest of us. COVID not only revealed that wastefulness and its cruelty anew, but deepened it – made it far worse.
Stigma, bigotry, and discrimination are the gravest threats to human dignity and sustainability, including in the intimate realm. Just look at the inhumane but stark disparity we have tolerated as a world during the pandemic – between what has happened to the poorest, who have been left to carry the greatest burden, as compared to the wealthiest who have only been further enriched. The evidence of that inequality is just as stark in the realms of sex and reproduction. Poor women are the ones who suffer most when access to abortion is made illegal.
Middle-class or upper-class persons who are pregnant and wish to have access to the option of safe abortion are almost always able to find a way around abortion prohibitions, even if also at deep personal cost. But the example of El Salvador where all abortion on any grounds is illegal, demonstrates how anti-poor are anti-abortion laws wherever they are introduced. The women who have been targeted for prosecution and imprisoned under that draconian law in El Salvador are overwhelmingly those living in poverty and/or indigenous women.
It is extraordinary to see how – with all the pretensions to sophistication and modernity that our global community claims – still crude, bigotry against LGBTQI+ persons, refugees and people of colour, plays out also in the sexual and reproductive realm. Maternal mortality is far worse for Black American women than for any other group of Americans. Refugee women struggle for access contraception far more than does almost any other group, while across the world, there is still only limited access to comprehensive sexuality education in schools – failing our children.
It is unacceptable that in the intimate realm, where resides our sense of self-worth, of being loved and being loving, adults with the authority to do otherwise, so often would rather foster stigma, bigotry and discrimination. That erosion of human dignity is the result of choices made by governments, and other leaders – those who do know better, who do have the obligation to do better under human rights standards, but who choose for their own self-interest to do their worst. Examples of that failure of leadership are found in the richest of countries, not only those facing a huge gap in public resources.
What is asked of someone like me as a leader frankly is not optimism, but far greater courage. What’s asked of me is a willingness to do far more with far less. I must have the courage to strip away my privilege, specifically where that denies others opportunity. If people like me, would have the courage to live and lead differently, then it would be those who have carried the costs of our relative advantages who could have the hope that they surely deserve.
Looking back on my now too long career, I still feel frustrated that where I tried to enact positive changes, their full potential was not realised. I can see part of my underperformance was related to this question of courage. I am convinced that leadership that is up to the task of tomorrow, not merely about protecting today or yesterday, involves more intelligent risk taking, more courageous demand and delivery of change, being far more mindful of the future consequences of what we do and don’t do today.
Today, however, I am far more grateful than hopeful. I am grateful to IPPF that I have been granted the chance to continue to contribute. To be an agent – courageously I hope – for change, rather than be a bystander.
To roll up my sleeves to try, once again, to be braver, fairer, more inclusive, more effective. For that reason, I am truly grateful today, as grateful as I’ve ever been, to be part of IPPF.
