Annual Conference 2021
25-26 November 2021 in London (UK)
Short Synopsis
Engineering to build back better
25 – 26 November 2021 – Online
The Royal Academy of Engineering, London, United Kingdom
Short Synopsis
We are delighted to invite you to ‘Engineering to build back better’, the 2021 annual conference of Euro-CASE, the European Council of Academies of Applied Sciences, Technologies and Engineering, hosted online this year by the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering.
The last 18 months have demonstrated the complexity of many of the challenges Europe faces today. As Europe recovers from the pandemic while targeting ambitious climate goals, we need to build a more resilient future, recognising the complex interconnection across the challenges we face.
This year’s conference will bring together engineers, scientists, policy experts and decision makers from across the UK and Europe to share ideas, expertise, and experience, equipping engineers to play their role in helping Europe to build back better. It will include sessions on:
• Engineering for net zero – building on the outputs from COP 26, exploring the role engineers must play to deliver net zero targets.
• Engineering a resilient future – exploring what a resilient sustainable future for Europe looks like and how engineers can help deliver this.
• Engineering an inclusive future – exploring the contribution of engineering to delivering inclusive growth and a just transition across Europe
Programme
The Academy was delighted to host this year’s annual conference of Euro-CASE, the European network of engineering and technology academies, on 25-26 November 2021 on the theme Engineering to build back better. The last 18 months have demonstrated the complex and systemic nature of many of the challenges Europe faces today, from health to the economy, from the climate crisis to social integration. As Europe recovers from the pandemic while targeting ambitious climate goals, we need to build a more resilient future, recognising the complex interconnection across the challenges we face. Engineers will be central to achieving these goals, from building more resilient infrastructure, to creating new digital solutions, and in orchestrating systems that work together to deliver change. This year’s Euro-CASE annual conference brought together the UK’s and Europe’s engineering communities with policymakers and others, to share ideas, plans, expertise, and experience, equipping engineers to play their role in helping Europe to build back better.
Links to the videos of each session are available in the programme below, or you can watch a complete playlist of videos from the conference on our Youtube channel.
Thursday 25 November
10.00am / 11.00am
Welcome – Engineering to build back better
- Professor Sir Jim McDonald FREng FRSE, President, Royal Academy of Engineering
- Tuula Teeri, Euro-CASE President, Professor and President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, IVA
Event Co-Chairs – welcome
- Professor Adisa Azapagic MBE FREng
- Professor Ric Parker CBE FREng
10.10am / 11.10am
Session 1 – Engineering for net zero
Sustainability and net zero goals must be at the heart of future recovery and growth across Europe. Building on the outputs from COP26, this session will explore the role policymakers and society need engineers to play to deliver net zero targets.
Keynote
- Professor Paul Monks, Chief Scientific Adviser, UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Panel discussion
- Professor Becky Lunn MBE FREng FRSE, University of Strathclyde, RAEng Net Zero working group member
- Professor Peter Lund, Aalto University, SAPEA Energy report Co-Chair
- Professor Christoph Schmidt, RWI Essen, SAPEA Energy report Co-Chair
- Yves Bamberger, Fellow NATF and Chair of the CAETS Energy Committee
11.25am / 12.25am
Session 1 continued – Engineering for net zero
Deep dive panel – Engineering for net zero in the built environment
- Professor Brian Norton, Technological University of Dublin, EASAC Decarbonisation of buildings report Chair
- Dr Maher Chebbo, Board member, Accenta.ai
- Professor Lieve Helsen, KU Leuven
1.45pm / 2.45pm
Session 2 – Engineering a resilient future
Covid-19 has highlighted the complexity and interplay between the challenges we face, from health to the economy, and climate change to social issues. The systems, infrastructure, and technology we build must be not just sustainable but also resilient to all these challenges. This session will explore what a resilient sustainable future looks like and how engineers can help deliver this.
Presentations
- Professor Roger Kemp MBE FREng, RAEng Engineering X Safer Complex Systems Advisory Board Chair
- Anne-Marie Eklund Löwinder, Swedish Academy of Engineering
- Carsten Orth Gaarn-Larsen, Senior Vice President, Technical University of Denmark
2.30pm / 3.30pm
Session 2 continued – Engineering a resilient future
Panel discussion
- Professor Roger Kemp MBE FREng, RAEng Engineering X Safer Complex Systems Advisory Board Chair
- Anne-Marie Eklund Löwinder, Swedish Academy of Engineering
- Carsten Orth Gaarn-Larsen, Senior Vice President, Technical University of Denmark
- Dr Long Seng To, RAEng Engineering for Development Research Fellow, Loughborough University
- Dr Elena Fersman, VP, Head of Global AI Accelerator, Ericsson
Friday 26 November
10.00am / 11.00am
Session 3 – Engineering an inclusive future
This session will explore engineering’s contribution to delivering inclusive growth and a just transition across Europe, taking into account the need for sustainable and resilient economies discussed on day 1.
Welcome and introduction
- Dr Hayaatun Sillem CBE, Chief Executive, Royal Academy of Engineering
Keynote
- Professor Nebojsa Nakicenovic, Deputy Chair Chief Scientific Advisors to the European Commission
Presentations
- Dr Nuria Oliver – Towards socially sustainable AI, Royal Academy of Engineering of Spain
- Professor John Hassler, Stockholm University
- Professor Nick Pidgeon, Cardiff University
Breakout discussion session (45 minutes)
11.55am / 12.55am
Event Co-Chair – closing summary of the conference
- Professor Ric Parker CBE FREng