UK Young Academy announces first members
10 January 2023Sixty-seven members selected from across disciplines to provide voice for change in new UK-wide Young Academy.
UK and Ireland National Academies have announced the first members of the new UK-wide Young Academy – a network of early career researchers and professionals established to help tackle local and global issues and promote meaningful change.
Sir Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society said, “We are delighted to introduce the first members of the UK Young Academy. This is a huge achievement for them and an exciting step for the UK in the Young Academy movement.
“It is vital that the next generation of researchers and professionals take their place on the frontlines of the issues that matter most. Finding solutions to global problems – pandemics, climate change, biodiversity loss and social inequality – needs to be guided by collaborative thinking across a breadth of disciplines, life experiences and ideas.
“I look forward to seeing the first cohort take ownership of this new initiative with energy and enthusiasm as they set the foundations for the UK Young Academy.”
The UK Young Academy’s first cohort brings together members from across academia, charity organisations and the private sector, to galvanise their skills, knowledge, and experience to find innovative solutions to the challenges facing societies now and in the future. Members are from across the UK, with 13% from Scotland, 7% from Wales, 5% from Northern Ireland and 75% from across areas in England. 49% of the cohort are women, and 34% are from minority ethnic backgrounds.
The successful candidates include researchers, innovators, clinicians, professionals and entrepreneurs who have each made significant contributions to their field, while going above and beyond to make an impact outside of their main areas of work.
The first cohort of the UK Young Academy will have the opportunity to shape the strategy and focus of this new organisation, tapping into their collective knowledge and expertise to inform local and global policy discussions.
Strategic themes and objectives will be determined by members based on areas that matter to them. Discussions on their key priorities will kick off at an induction event held at the Royal Society in January 2023 and will be finalised over the coming year – members have already expressed interest in areas from climate change and sustainability to equality, diversity and inclusion, public health, education and skills, and supporting early career researchers.
The UK Young Academy has been established as an interdisciplinary collaboration with the Academy of Medical Sciences, British Academy, Learned Society of Wales, Royal Academy of Engineering, Royal Irish Academy, Royal Society of Edinburgh, and the Royal Society. It joins the global initiative of Young Academies, with the UK Young Academy becoming the 50th to join the Young Academy movement.
The call for members to the UK Young Academy in June 2022 received over 400 applicants from a variety of sectors including Life Sciences, Physical, Engineering and Computer Sciences, Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Business, Public Service and Communications. The members were chosen by a panel of 65 reviewers, including an Appointments Committee.
The successful applicants officially took up their posts on 1 January 2023, and membership runs for five years.
Full list of members
Sean Adams
Professor in New Testament and Ancient Culture
University of Glasgow
Abigail Agyei
Senior Policy Advisor – Early Years Workforce Capability
Department of Health and Social Care
Ralph Akyea
Senior Research Fellow (Clinical Epidemiology)
University of Nottingham
Jahangir Alom
Emergency Medicine Doctor and Former Clinical Lead for the NHS Staff Vaccination Programme Barts Health NHS Trust
Alexandra Amon
Senior Kavli Research Fellow (Astrophysics)
University of Cambridge
Muhammad Naeem Anwar
Royal Society-Newton International Fellow (Physics)
Swansea University
Michael Berthaume
Senior Lecturer (Mechanical Engineering and Design)
London South Bank University
Ana Blanco Alvarez
Senior Lecturer in Infrastructure Engineering
Loughborough University
Amy Booth
Medical Doctor and DPhil Candidate
University of Oxford
Alice Bowen
Royal Society/EPSRC Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow and University of Manchester Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw Fellow (Chemistry)
University of Manchester
Ruth Bowness
Lecturer/MRC Fellow (Mathematical Sciences)
University of Bath
Katrina Bradley
Teacher and Company Director
Numerasee
Igor Chernyavsky
Presidential Academic Fellow (Applied Mathematics)
University of Manchester
Karen Donaldson
Project Manager
The National Robotarium
Rhys Dore
Paediatric Doctor and NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow of Paediatrics
Barts Health NHS Trust and University College London
Brian Earp
Senior Research Fellow (Practical Ethics)
University of Oxford
Rosa Filgueira
Lecturer (Computer Sciences)
University of St Andrews
Tom Fleming
Co-Founder and COO
Arctoris
Andrea Ford
Research Fellow (Medical and Cultural Anthropology)
University of Edinburgh
Sivaneswary Genapathy
Associate Principal Scientist
AstraZeneca
Daniel Greenwood
Clinical Pharmacist and Consultant
Joseph Harvey
Substation Engineer
National Grid
Chiara Heide
CEO and Founder
P.Happi by B.Y.M. Technologies Ltd
David Hester
Senior Lecturer in Civil Engineering
Queen's University Belfast
Eleanore Hickman
Lecturer (Corporate Law, Governance and Finance)
University of Bristol
Andrew Holding
Lecturer (Cancer Biology)
University of York
Yihua Hu
Reader (Electrical Engineering)
University of York
Barbara Hughes-Moore
Lecturer in Law
Cardiff University
Anthony Kevins
Lecturer in Politics and International Studies
Loughborough University
Rebecca Killick
Professor (Statistics)
Lancaster University
Abdalrhaman Mohamed Koko
Higher Research Scientist
National Physical Laboratory
Saloni Krishnan
Reader (Psychology)
Royal Holloway, University of London
Peter Kwok
Chair
UK Federation of Chinese Professionals
Mato Lagator
Independent Research Fellow (Bacterial Evolution)
University of Manchester
Mengyao Lu
Research Fellow (Child Safety)
University of Edinburgh
Jane Masoli
Senior Clinical Research Fellow
University of Exeter/Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
Alistair McConnell
Assistant Professor in Computer Science
Heriot-Watt University
Sophie Meekings
Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow (Psychology)
University of York
Gerardo Javier Melendez-Torres
Professor of Clinical and Social Epidemiology
University of Exeter
Aditee Mitra
Research Fellow (Marine Ecology)
Cardiff University
Victoria Miyandazi
Research Fellow (Legal and Constitutional Research)
University of St Andrews
Isabel Moore
Reader in Human Movement and Sports Medicine
Cardiff Metropolitan University
Kinga Morsanyi
Senior Lecturer in Mathematical Cognition
Loughborough University
Xavier Moya
Assistant Professor (Materials Science and Metallurgy)
University of Cambridge
Denis Newman-Griffis
Lecturer in Data Science
University of Sheffield
Linda Oyama
Lecturer in Microbiomics, Antimicrobial Resistance and One Health
Queen’s University Belfast
Alina Patelli
Senior Lecturer in Computer Science
Aston University
John-Mark Philo
UKRI Future Leaders Fellow (Early-Modern Culture)
University of East Anglia
Charles Maurice Pigott
Lecturer in Hispanic Studies
University of Strathclyde
Sarah Pike
UKRI Future Leaders Fellow (Organic Chemistry)
University of Birmingham
Amit Narahar Pujari
Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Engineering
University of Hertfordshire (Honorary appointment at University of Aberdeen)
Edward Pyzer-Knapp
Global Lead, AI Enriched Simulation
IBM
Richard Randle-Boggis
Research Associate (Global Sustainability)
University of Sheffield
Mirain Rhys
Senior Lecturer, Psychology
Cardiff Metropolitan University
Ricardo Safra de Campos
Senior Lecturer in Human Geography
University of Exeter
Fatemeh Shahbazi
Assistant Professor (Engineering)
University of Warwick
Katie Sheehan
UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Senior Lecturer Rehabilitation/Health Services
King's College London
Abhay Soorya
Senior Director, Strategic Solutions
C3 AI
Christopher Stewart
Research Fellow (Microbial Ecology)
Newcastle University
Ahmad Taha
Lecturer and Assistant Professor (Autonomous Systems)
University of Glasgow
Catarina Vicente
Science Strategy and Projects Manager/Official Fellow in Public Engagement with Research
University of Oxford
Amy Vincent
Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellow (Mitochondrial Research)
Newcastle University
Fiona Walport
Research Fellow (Civil and Environmental Engineering)
Imperial College London
Vanissa Wanick
Senior Lecturer in Interaction Design
University of Southampton
Dominic Willmott
Senior Lecturer in Criminology
Loughborough University
Wenmiao Yu
Co-Founder and Director of Business Development
Quantum Dice Ltd
Leor Zmigrod
Research Fellow (Political Psychology and Neuroscience)
University of Cambridge
Find out more about the UK Young Academy.