Category: 2023 Speaker

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Florian Puch heads the plastics technology group at the Ilmenau University of Technology since March 1st, 2021, and is scientific head of the Thuringian Institute for Textile and Plastics Research e.V. (TITK) in Rudolstadt and, since July 1st, 2023, managing director of the Ostthüringische Materialprüfgesellschaft für Textil- und Kunststoffe mbH (OMPG). At the Thuringian Innovation Center for Mobility (ThIMo), Florian Puch is responsible for the core competence of plastics technology and lightweight construction and at the same time acts as deputy director of the ThIMo. Before that, he held various positions in research and development, technology, and marketing at BASF SE in Ludwigshafen and the MBCC Group in Mannheim, a provider of construction chemical products and solutions spun off from BASF. In addition to his professional work, Florian Puch successfully completed his MBA studies at the Mannheim Business School in 2018. He began his scientific career at the Institute for Plastics Processing in Industry and Crafts at RWTH Aachen University, where he received his doctorate in 2015. Florian Puch previously studied mechanical engineering and economics at RWTH Aachen University. On a voluntary basis, he is chairman of the board of the Research Association for Materials from Sustainable Raw Materials e.V., a member of the board of PolymerMat e.V. and the support association for plastics technology at the Technical University of Ilmenau e.V. as well as a member of the strategy advisory board “Industrial Production and Systems” of the Free State of Thuringia and the strategy advisory board of the Lightweight Construction Initiative of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK).

Dr Amani Alaali is an Assistant Professor in the Interior Design Department at Ahlia University in Bahrain. Alaali’s research interests are in localization and cross-cultural research and exploring the impact of cultural traditions on interior design practices. She focuses on the importance of incorporating local culture values and traditions into contemporary interior design practices that are often influenced by global design trends.

Vadim Grinevich is Professor of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Innovation. Vadim’s key expertise is in the field of academic entrepreneurship, innovation and university-industry links. His research develops an inclusive approach which helps shed light on the nature and extent of entrepreneurial activities by academics with different intersectional profiles, from both STEM and non-STEM disciplines and across different types of universities. Vadim is also interested in digitally enabled sustainable entrepreneurship.

Before joining Bradford, Vadim has held key leadership roles. He was Head of Research at the Wolverhampton Business School. He led the Centre for Inclusive and Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Southampton Business School. He was also Faculty Director of Graduate School at Business, Law and Art & Social Sciences at the University of Southampton. Vadim is keen to use all his knowledge, experience and skills to help further enhance the profile of the entrepreneurship & innovation education and research at the School of Management, with particular emphasis on the co-creation of value for communities, individuals and organisations locally, nationally and internationally.

Vadim holds a PhD in Management Studies from the University of Cambridge where he was a Cambridge Overseas Trust Scholar. He was a Regional Research Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at Washington, D.C., and held research positions at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, Cambridge-MIT Institute and Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies. He was lecturing at the University of Suffolk, and remains a Visiting Professor at the University of Southampton.

Prof Dr Shamsul is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student Affairs) for Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Shamsul obtained his PhD in Software Engineering from Aston University, U.K. Prior to that; he graduated with a Master of Science in Computer Science from Central Michigan University. His undergraduate qualification is a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Western Michigan University. He joined Mesiniaga Sdn. Bhd., sole agent dealer for IBM in Malaysia, in 1988 as Programmer Analyst. His responsibility was to design and develop software for the personal computer platform.

His 38 years of involvement in Information Technology started in 1982 when the PC industry was in its infancy. His interest now is in the area of Software Engineering, focusing on the Internet of Things (IoT) and Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) and their application in the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR).

Christina Toigo received her Masters degree in polymer chemistry from the Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria and a PhD in electrochemistry from Alma Mater Studiorum – Universitá di Bologna, Italy. She has been in the field of electrochemistry and battery technology for more than 9 years in both industry and research, working on lithium- and sodium-ion batteries and combined systems for energy storage and hydrogen generation. She currently holds a professorship in “Hydrogen Technology and Energy Storage Systems” at University of Applied Sciences Wels, Austria, where she is focusing on sustainable materials, integration of complex energy systems and innovative approaches within this field. In her lectures, she shares real-world applications and practical insights, making complex concepts easily comprehensible.

Stefan Rahmstorf is Co-Head of Research Department on Earth System Analysis of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and Professor of Physics of the Oceans at the University of Potsdam. 

A physicist and physical oceanographer by training, Stefan Rahmstorf’s research focusses on paleoclimate, ocean circulation, sea level, extreme weather events and Earth System modeling.

After working at the New Zealand Oceanographic Institute and the Institute of Marine Science in Kiel, Stefan Rahmstorf joined PIK in 1996. He holds a professorship of Physics of the Oceans at the University of Potsdam since 2000. From 2004 to 2013 Stefan Rahmstorf advised the German government as a member of its Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU).

He is not only an outstanding and highly cited scientist but also a sought-after science communicator and speaker, winning e.g. the Climate Communication Prize of the American Geophysical Union in 2017. He co-founded the award-winning Realclimate and KlimaLounge blogs and is Europe’s climate scientist with the most Twitter followers (2020).

(www.pik-potsdam.de/members/stefan/homepage)

University of Potsdam, Institute of Physics and Astronomy
Head of Earth System Analysis, PIK
Fellow of the American Geophysical Union
Honorary Fellow of the University of Wales/Bangor
Member of the Academia Europaea

Popular books:
Wolken, Wind & Wetter (Die Kinderuni)
The Climate Crisis
Our Threatened Oceans / Wie bedroht sind die Ozeane?
Der Klimawandel

David is Professor of Small Business Development and Organisational Studies and Director of Business and Community Engagement in the School of Management at the University of Bradford, UK. As such he leads on the development of the School’s programme and portfolio in respect of support for small business support and in developing business engagement. David has over 20 years of experience in higher education and returned to Bradford (where he began his academic career) in 2019, having previously led the Business School at the University of Salford, UK.

David’s research interests include strategic learning, change and leadership, with a particular interest small forms and entrepreneurship. He is currently leading a major longitudinal study looking at small firm resilience. He is a member of the academic steering group for Y-PERN (the Yorkshire Policy and Engagement Research Network), a cross-institutional collaboration seeking to drive research informed policy making within the Yorkshire region. He has undertaken research and consultancy and delivered executive education for both SMEs and large firms.