Generational Shift
YPP Cohort: 2018-20
The inaugural Young Professionals Panel was established in 2018 to support and inform the Commission’s work, offering independent perspectives on the future of infrastructure
Young Professionals Panel 2018–20
The inaugural Young Professionals Panel (YPP) was appointed in April 2018 to support and inform the Commission’s work, and raise awareness and engage younger audiences in shaping the future of the UK’s infrastructure.
The 16 young professionals appointed to the inaugural Panel are listed below (a new Panel was appointed in June 2020). The Panel devised their own work plan for their term in office, reflecting particularly on how infrastructure should be planned and delivered to meet the needs of future generations. Panel members attended parts of Commission meetings and fed into various policy discussions.
Highlights of the YPP’s work can be found across these pages, including the ‘Thought Pieces’ which are offered as provocations for reflection on the future of infrastructure, cutting across sectoral boundaries and traditional approaches and offering ideas for the future.
Across the material on these pages, the YPP explore how infrastructure is a great integrator at best – connecting people and places, supporting local economy and fostering social interaction; while at worst, badly planned or lacking infrastructure leaves communities cut off, whether physically, digitally or socially.
Matthew Ball
Manager - Ofgem
This is a biography for Matthew Ball
Matthew grew up in a village outside Ely in Cambridgeshire. His interests have always been in science and technology, which he pursued at both GCSE and A Level. That led him to undertake a Masters in Electrical Engineering at Durham University, graduating in the summer of 2014. He then joined Ofgem on their graduate scheme, covering areas including both energy network regulation and retail protection. After the graduate scheme, he took up a permanent role in the networks division of Ofgem, looking at the use of competition within monopoly regulation.
John Bradburn
Senior Consultant - Atkins
This is a biography for John Bradburn
John is a senior consultant at Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group. He works in the transportation sector, specialising in Intelligent Mobility. This is a new way of thinking about how to use technology and data to connect people, places and goods across all transport modes. John works in both project delivery and business development, and is involved a range of innovative projects related to connected and autonomous vehicles and mobility as a service. He holds a Master’s degree in Town and Country Planning and has spent six years working in the transportation sector across highways, rail and active travel.
Alison Caldwell
Principal Engineer - WSP
This is a biography for Alison Caldwell
Alison’s career has been focused on flood risk and sustainable water management within the UK (mostly in Birmingham) and globally, including two years in New York City (NYC).
She has championed the sustainable management of water, with a desire to influence strategic policy and guidance and thinking about the lasting legacy of the decisions we make today. Alison’s involvement with NYC’s response to Superstorm Sandy ignited her passion and desire to design and influence resilience to our changing climate, leading to a strong belief that Britain could be a global leader in ‘Living with Water.’ She has long been a passionate advocate of evidence based policymaking and planning, and hopes to contribute her first-hand experience of dealing with a major natural disaster in New York to future proofing the UK’s critical infrastructure.
Joshua Dickerson
Associate - Deetu
This is a biography for Joshua Dickerson
Through an early established passion for understanding the way we live, work and travel, Josh has formed an enthusiasm for the future of infrastructure that has steered his career to where he is today. He is an associate and founding member of Deetu, the data and technology development hub of BWB Consulting. The variety of work he undertakes there varies widely, from the creation of city-wide investment plans to the formation of asset data models and visualisations. However, with a background in geography, he predominantly focuses upon the implementation of location intelligence within the built environment.
Victor Frebault
Consultant - Arup
This is a biography for Victor Frebault
Victor works as a consultant for Arup. Before this he worked in the economics department of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and as the operations manager for a microfinance institution in the Philippines. Living in poorly planned urban settings in Manila and witnessing the devastating impacts of Typhoon Haiyan on vulnerable coastal cities drove him to explore how economic solutions can contribute to urban wellbeing. In his current role, he advises the private sector, governments and their agencies, and voluntary and community organisations on projects spanning the fields of energy, transport, and the resilience of the built environment.
Laura Hawkins
Innovation Project Manager - SSE
This is a biography for Laura Hawkins
Laura Hawkins works for Scottish and Southern Energy Networks (SSE). Her role in the Innovation team is running projects which help the electricity network become the most efficient, low carbon network it can. The projects Laura works on are specifically supporting the low carbon transition to enable more renewable energy and new technology such as EVs to connect to the network. While Laura studied for her undergraduate degree in renewable energy at the University of Exeter, she took a number of work placements which led to her interest in the electricity networks – investigating how generation technologies tie together. After her degree, she worked with Marks & Spencer in the Energy Team for her four-year industrial doctorate, based at the University of Reading. She worked at IBM as an energy and Utilities Consultant and UK Power Networks as an Innovation Project Lead before her current role. Her interests lie in the interactions between different infrastructure sectors.
Jennifer Holgate
Legal Counsel - Vattenfall
This is a biography for Jennifer Holgate
Jenn Holgate is Legal Counsel at Vattenfall, a leading European energy company whose goal is to achieve “fossil free living in one generation”. Jenn sits within the energy solutions team and is responsible for all legal matters relating to heat networks, district heating and wider decarbonisation measures for projects across the UK. Throughout her legal career Jenn has specialized in the delivery of a wide variety of infrastructure projects across the UK, including regeneration sites, residential, renewable energy, retail, grid, roads and rail.
Rosie Hughes
Innovation Lead - AECOM
This is a biography for Rosie Hughes
Rosie Hughes is driven by a fascination with how people move around, with a specialist interest in the road network. Rosie has developed a diverse practice base from understanding and engaging people and projects in infrastructure contexts. She is a creative consulting professional with demonstrated capacity for leading change in the UK civil engineering highways design sector, promoting innovation in project delivery. Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a PhD that focused on rural road use practices, Rosie uses her expertise in Practice Theory to challenge our approach to infrastructure as an industry.
Annette Jezierska
Co-Founder - The Future Fox
This is a biography for Annette Jezierska
Annette Jezierska is the co-founder of The Future Fox, a transport technology company working to accelerate the development of smart, sustainable and people-focused city infrastructure. She previously worked at Sustrans, the UK sustainable transport charity, where she built a track record in developing citizen-centric urban infrastructure solutions with multi-disciplinary teams. She led key projects including the feasibility stage of the Canary Wharf to Rotherhithe cycle bridge, and the commercial bid to deliver London’s Quietway cycle route network. She previously worked for Westminster City Council to increase recycling rates. She has an MA and MSci in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University.
Petra Marko
Co-Founder - Marko & Placemakers
This is a biography for Petra Marko
Petra is co-founder of Marko & Placemakers, a city design consultancy addressing the overlaps between place, process and people, reaching beyond the physical aspects of design. She believes that sustainable design practice is about combining creativity with hands-on facilitation and mediation. Petra led placemaking strategies and town centre studies for several London boroughs, and was recently part of the winning team for the National Infrastructure Commission’s Cambridge to Oxford growth corridor competition. She has taught at institutions including the London School of Architecture and Stadslab Urban Design Laboratory and sits on the Royal Institute of British Architects’ Guerrilla Tactics Steering Group. She has a diploma in architecture (TU Vienna) and a Masters in Creative Entrepreneurship (Goldsmiths, University of London).
Madeleine Kessler
Associate - Haptic Architects
This is a biography for Madeleine Kessler
Madeleine is an Associate Architect at Haptic Architects where she has worked on projects including Oslo Airport City, HS2 Euston Station, and a community pavilion in Kings Cross. Trained as both an architect and structural engineer, she is interested in finding creative solutions that integrate engineering and urban design. She has worked internationally at firms in the UK, Switzerland and China, on projects ranging from temporary pavilions and theatres to infrastructure and masterplanning.
Madeleine was recently selected as co-curator of the British Pavilion at the 2020 Venice Architecture Biennale, with a proposal that explores privatised public spaces across the UK. Passionate about promoting a creative understanding of the city, she sits on the National Infrastructure Commission’s Design Panel and teaches and lectures at universities that have included the Architectural Association, the University of Sheffield and the University of London. She was shortlisted for Building Design’s 2019 Female Architectural Leader of the Year Award.
Charlotte Mitchell
Associate - Quod
This is a biography for Charlotte Mitchell
Charlotte is an urban planner and cities enthusiast. As an associate at Quod, her focus has been strategic planning: she develops planning strategies to deliver complex and long-term projects, such as garden towns and Heathrow’s third runway. Outside of her day job, Charlotte helps run the London chapter of Urbanistas: a women-led network that amplifies the voices of women across the built environment sector to make cities better for everyone.
Henry Metcalf
Engineer - Stantec
This is a biography for Henry Metcalf
Henry works as a civil engineer at Stantec. After graduating from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Henry trained as a mathematics teacher before re-joining the engineering profession. He enjoys working in transport because its networks have highly mathematical properties that can be analysed in a range of mathematical ways. Henry has worked on a range of projects inside and outside of working – including various road, rail and cycling schemes – that have relied on reusing abandoned infrastructure.
Christian O’Brien
Engineer - Dandara
This is a biography for Christian O’Brien
Christian O’Brien is an Engineer at property developer Dandara, where he is responsible for the engineering project management of residential and commercial developments across Southern England, from land acquisition through to completion. Before working for his previous employer, national housebuilder Bellway Homes, he achieved a First Class Hons Master’s degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Surrey and was sponsored by design consultancy Peter Brett Associates. Christian was involved in a wide variety of public infrastructure projects and even travelled to Costa Rica to pursue his interests in renewable energy systems, sustainable housing design and appropriate use of technology. He has been recognised as ‘Client Graduate of the Year’ by the New Civil Engineer magazine, in addition to receiving the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ from the University of Surrey for his commitments to STEM and schools outreach.
Martin Plant
Associate - McKinsey
This is a biography for Martin Plant
Martin is an Associate with McKinsey & Company’s Capital Projects and Infrastructure team, a Chartered Civil Engineer and reservist with the British Army infrastructure support group. He has a diverse background which includes mineral exploration operations in sub-saharan Africa, geotechnical design for the nuclear and oil & gas industries, and more recently in management consulting. A keen surfer, Martin is passionate about all things outdoors.
Sakthy Selvakumaran
Civil Engineer - University of Cambridge
This is a biography for Sakthy Selvakumaran
Sakthy is a chartered engineer who has worked across different roles, continents and cultures. These roles include designing new structures on mega-projects like Crossrail, assessment to upgrade UK infrastructure assets, and working on sites to resolve critical construction issues. She has also worked in R&D, developing new solutions and technologies to change the way infrastructure is designed, constructed and maintained. She is currently undertaking doctoral research at Cambridge University on applying a rapidly advancing radar satellite imagery technology to reduce vulnerability of infrastructure within the urban environment, as well as understand how we can derive value from monitoring data.
Thought Pieces
Opinion pieces published by the inaugural YPP panel 2018–20. Articles reflect the views of each author, rather than the Commission.
From innovative funding models to ways to cut waste and enhance our transport hubs, the YPP’s opinion pieces below set out questions and possible directions towards a paradigm shift in individual and collective decision making that, they argue, can lead us to places where the human and natural world can thrive. Articles reflect the views of each author, rather than the Commission.
Flexible working – working with or against flexible electricity networks?
Flexibility is the word on the street – in this piece, Laura Hawkins argues that flexibility across different sectors offers the opportunity to work harmoniously together, but that without proper collaboration now, they could work against each other causing more damage than good. Flexibility in the workplace is on everyone’s lips. It’s been cited on...
Could post-pandemic Britain be a breath of fresh air?
The government has announced a £2bn package to create a new era for cycling and walking. It might be a response to the pandemic but the pledge is an important step towards putting people and the environment first. Having advocated for recalibrating the “movement hierarchy” through the VeloCity project for the past three years (the winner of the...
How Coronavirus could shape the next generation of infrastructure
When the YPP formed two years ago, we agreed among ourselves to try to answer the question: what does a generational shift mean for the future of infrastructure? We wanted to think big – not to be hemmed in by existing definitions, practices or behaviours. Yet here we are, publishing our response to that question...
Crowd-funding Local Infrastructure
There’s a woman in my building named Henrietta who, years ago, took it upon herself to plant a rose garden in the green space out front. She’s tended to it ever since, diligently pruning, year on year, while the rest of us offer grateful nods and the occasional hand as we come and go. There have always been...
Flexi-ticketing on the Railway
At present, the small number of flexi and other ticketing options available on the railway makes flexible working an unattractive proposition for many. Changing this will form one part of creating a “flexible working friendly” UK. Flexible working is the ability to deviate from the standard pattern of work (typically the ‘9-to-5’) and includes but is not limited to: part-time working, term-time working, job-sharing, flexitime,...
Experience vs things
“Over the past few years, the US has witnessed a tectonic shift in spending with 4x more spending devoted to experiences rather than physical goods”. Millennials across the world have grown up with the existence of experiential shopping, for example Airbnb and ‘retailtainment’ like the Vans store equipped with a skate park. It is deepset in their spending behaviours....
Opportunities for Infrastructure Design to Combat Loneliness
Much has been written about loneliness and the elderly, but less of how Millennials are Gen Z are grappling with this from a much earlier age, particularly as digital experiences replace physical interaction. How can infrastructure work harder for us and combat loneliness through good design? Loneliness is often understood as physical isolation, but it...
Shifts in Consumer Behaviour: Make do and Mend?
Younger generations are choosing to express their demand to act to avoid impacts from climate change in many ways – from protests through to their buying choices as consumers. This has impacted retail sectors and created new platforms and models, but how might these trends in consumer behaviour manifest themselves in the infrastructure sector? From...
Podcasts
The inaugural YPP launched ‘Infra[un]structured’ – a regular podcast featuring special guests from across the infrastructure world. Each podcast was hosted by Charlotte Mitchell and the series covers a diverse range of topics including tunnels, community engagement and design.
Infra[un]structured
You can listen to all 11 editions of Infra[un]structured produced by the 2018–20 cohort below.
Infracafés
The inaugural YPP established a programme of ‘Infracafés’ – free informal events to prompt conversations about infrastructure.
Details of the three events, held across the UK, can be found below.
The Future of Infrastructure Funding, London, January 2020
Ahead of the 2020 Spring Budget and publication of the Infrastructure Finance Review, this event sought to explore how industry, government and society views infrastructure investment, and where the balance of risk and reward should lie. This infracafé saw discussion about what younger professionals think about project funding and procurement models; and reflected on the...
Circular Economy, London, July 2019
This infracafé explored the concept of the circular economy – a regenerative approach to the planet where we make most of our resources and minimise waste. Speakers reflected on the impact of the first-ever Europe-wide strategy on plastics, adopted in early 2018; and the role London as a city is playing in spearheading circular economy...
Innovation in Infrastructure, Newcastle, July 2019
On the first anniversary of the National infrastructure Assessment, this infracafé reflected on the future of innovation in infrastructure, particularly in the areas identified in the Assessment. The discussion covered topics ranging from the latest developments in renewable energy sources; the benefits of full fibre broadband roll-out for the north east; priorities for the then...