UK Young Academy appoints 42 new emerging leaders

Today, 42 emerging leaders from across the UK have been named as the newest members of the UK Young Academy – an interdisciplinary network of early-career professionals and researchers working together to tackle pressing global and local challenges and promote lasting change.

The new members come from a wide range of sectors, with backgrounds in political science, engineering, government, communications and the creative and performing industries, and more. Each member has demonstrated exceptional promise in their field while also showing a strong commitment to applying their expertise beyond their main areas of work, with a drive to engage in ways that cross traditional disciplinary boundaries and align with the aims of the UK Young Academy.

As members of the UK Young Academy, they will have the opportunity to take action on both local and global issues. Through interdisciplinary projects and working across sectors, they will bridge gaps, drive innovation, and develop the solutions needed to address critical challenges – all while advancing their professional development and contributing to a global network of Young Academies focused on achieving positive outcomes.

Speaking on behalf of the UK Young Academy Membership Selection Committee, Alistair McConnell, Assistant Professor in Computer Science at Heriot-Watt University, said: “The solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges won’t come from a single field or perspective. We need to bring together expertise and insights from a range of disciplines.”

“Today, we are delighted to welcome our newest members, whose diverse backgrounds and expertise will bring fresh perspectives to the UK Young Academy. These members will have the opportunity to challenge boundaries, make new connections, and work together to develop innovative solutions to the challenges that matter most.”

“As we enter our third year as an organisation, the new members will be able to contribute right from the outset. Through involvement in innovative projects, work programmes, or by ensuring that early-career voices are part of key global and local debates, they’ll be positioned to make a meaningful contribution.”

For the first time, a select group of emerging leaders have been chosen for membership in the UK Young Academy through a dedicated route in collaboration with the Council of At-Risk Academics (Cara). At-risk academics from Cara’s network were invited to apply for membership as part of a UK Young Academy member-led project focused on supporting at-risk early-career researchers across the UK.

Next week, the newest members of the UK Young Academy will come together for their Induction Day, where they will learn about the UK Young Academy’s activities and programmes. This will be followed by the third annual All Members’ Meeting, marking the first opportunity for this new group to connect with the wider membership.

The new members take up their posts from 1 April 2025, and membership runs for five years.

The list of new UK Young Academy members includes (in alphabetical order by surname):

Nesrin Alrefaai
Research Fellow              
London School of Economics and Political Sciences

Thaddeus Anim-Somuah           
Global Senior Manager Sustainability      
Philips

Sultan Ahmad Aria        
PhD Researcher and AHEAD Project Assistant  
Manchester Metropolitan University

Dareen Assaf   
Research Visiting Fellow and Early Career Researcher    
Sheffield Hallam University

Sadiq Bhanbhro             
Senior Research Fellow
Sheffield Hallam University

William Bolton
NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer in Neurosurgery and Neurosurgery Specialist Registrar
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and University of Leeds

Nicola Boydell 
Lecturer in Social Science and Public Health        
University of Edinburgh

Franck Courbon             
Chief Executive Officer 
Ethicronics Ltd

Giulia De Togni              
Chancellor’s Fellow         
The University of Edinburgh

Heather Doran 
Public Engagement Manager      
Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science, University of Dundee

Ievgeniia Gubkina         
History and Theory Tutor
University College London

Molly Halligan 
Senior Research Officer
Scottish Government

David Harris     
Senior Research Fellow
University of Exeter

Haitao He           
Reader in Transport and AI; Director of Transport AI Innovation Centre (TRAICE) 
Loughborough University

Camilla Irvine-Fortescue             
Responsible Impact Specialist   
Heriot-Watt University

Samer Jaber     
PhD Researcher               
Royal Holloway, University of London

Aqil Jaigirdar   
CEO      
Gravida Ltd

Evelyn Keaveney            
NERC Independent Research Fellow      
Queen’s University Belfast

Chi Ying Lam   
Lecturer in Community Music and Social Justice/ Co-Artistic Director         
University of Southampton/ Little Bean Theatre

Takashi Lawson             
Researcher         
Microsoft Research

Kif Liakath-Ali  
Lecturer in Advanced Cell Biology            
University of Southampton

David Maidment             
Senior Lecturer in Psychology   
Loughborough University

Intigam Mamedov

Visiting Research Fellow

Northumbria University

Hasan Maridi

Research Fellow

The University of Manchester

Katharine Miltner           
Lecturer in Data, AI, and Society               
University of Sheffield

Alzira Minikeeva             
PhD Researcher               
Birkbeck University of London

Oleksandra Moskalenko             
Visiting Professor            
London School of Economics and Political Science

Tin Naing           
Postdoctoral Research Fellowship            
University of Oxford

Josephine Pepper         
Associate           
J A Kemp LLP

Sarah-Jane Potts           
Lecturer               
Swansea University

Connor Qui

NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow in General Practice

Imperial College London

Fatima Rezai    
PhD Researcher and Research Assistant              
Nottingham Trent University

Kawita Sarwari
Postgraduate Researcher
University of Leeds

Ramaa Sharma               
Executive Coach & Digital AI Media Consultant
How we do this Ltd

Alexandros Stratakos
Associate Professor
University of the West of England

Freda Tait          
Strategic Projects & Change Director and PMO lead    
AstraZeneca

Juliette Unwin 
Lecturer in Statistical Science     
University of Bristol

Tetiana Vodotyka           
Research Fellow and IAS CARA Fellow

Institute of Advanced Study, Durham University

Yana Volkova  
Researcher         
Queen’s University Belfast

Keri Ka-Yee Wong         
Associate Professor of Developmental Psychology, Co-Director UCL Centre for Education and Criminal Justice

University College London

Khaleda Zaheer              
CEO      
Refugee Crisis Foundation

Wioleta Zelek   
Senior Research Fellow UK-DRI Emerging Leader Race Against Dementia ARUK Fellow
Cardiff University