The Face of Engineering Festival – Industry Conference

Full description

Join us for a day-long conference, celebrating the diverse faces in engineering, and driving action around the recruitment and retention of women, LGBTQ+ people, and people of colour in the industry.

We will hear from a range of inspiring engineers via a number of panels, and optional workshops and talks. The conference is open to all, from those working in any engineering discipline, to students and academics, to educators, to those who are just passionate about changing the current face of engineering.

Delegates are welcome to join us for all, or part of the day. We will also be live streaming this event for those who cannot attend in person – to register to access the live stream, click here.

Booking information

Date: Thursday 7th April

Time: 9:30am – 3:30pm

Each person attending in-person must have their own ticket.

Tickets are free, but if you would like to make a small donation to support the charitable work of The Common Room, it would be hugely appreciated.

Lunch will be provided for all delegates on the day.

What’s happening

Welcomes and key note – 10:00-10:40

Welcome from Liz Mayes – Chief Executive, The Common Room

Welcome from Ngunan Adamu – Producer/Presenter, BBC Radio Merseyside; BBC International multi-platform trainer; and Founder and CEO, iWoman Academy

Sponsor welcome: Paul Patrick – Stadler

Key note: Shrouk El-Attar – Lead Senior Electronics Engineer, Emm Technology; Belly Dancer, ‘Dancing Queer’; and refugee

Panel Discussion: ‘Diversity in engineering: barriers and why diversity is important’ – 10:40-11:20

Chaired by Ngunan Adamu – Producer/Presenter, BBC Radio Merseyside; BBC International multi-platform trainer; and Founder and CEO, iWoman Academy

Panellists:

Steena Nasapen-Watson – Regional Director, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North East, Yorkshire and Humber

Clare Wood – Director, Turner & Townsend

Margherita Pasquariello – Head of Strategy, NA College

Breakout Sessions – 11:30-12:15

Delegates can choose to attend one of the three following sessions:

‘Motherhood and Engineering’ workshop

Host: Liz Mayes – Chief Executive, The Common Room

Facilitators:

Krystina Pearson-Rampeearee – Senior Flight Systems Engineer, BAE Systems

Yewande Akinola MBE – Engineering Designer; Innovator; and Visiting Professor at the University of Westminster

Meshi Taka – Associate Director, Waterman Aspen and North East Fairness, Inclusion and Respect Lead, The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North East

‘Inspiring, securing and maintaining diverse talent pipelines’ workshop

Host: Emily Tench – Programme and Engagement Manager, The Common Room

Facilitators:

Steena Nasapen-Watson – Regional Director, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North East, Yorkshire and Humber

Neil Willis – Regional Lead for Education Challenge, the North East Local Enterprise Partnership

Margherita Pasquariello – Head of Strategy, NA College (afternoon breakout session only)

Flash Talks

Our flash talk speakers will share their thoughts and perspective on diversity in engineering.

Olivia Mclurg – Fourth Year Mechanical/Electrical Apprentice, CAT)

Laura Bartle – Electrical Engineer, Arup

Panel Discussion: ‘Innovation and Failure’ – 13:00-13:50

Chaired by Ngunan Adamu – Producer/Presenter, BBC Radio Merseyside; BBC International multi-platform trainer; and Founder and CEO, iWoman Academy

Panellists:

Tina Catling – Director of Innovation, Morgan Sindall Infrastructure

Matt Boyle OBE – Chair of Trustees, The Common Room and Professor of Practice, Newcastle University Engineering Faculty

Meshi Taka – Associate Director, Waterman Aspen and North East Fairness, Inclusion and Respect Lead, The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North East

Breakout Sessions – 14:00-14:45

Delegates can choose to attend one of the three following sessions:

‘Motherhood and Engineering’ workshop

See above.

‘Inspiring, securing and maintaining diverse talent pipelines’ workshop

See above.

Flash Talks

Session 2 speakers:

Eden McGlen – Engineering Tutor Assessor at UNIPRES (UK) LIMITED

Yewande Akinola MBE – Engineering Designer; Innovator; and Visiting Professor at the University of Westminster

Panel Discussion: ‘Reflections on the day, and how we can inspire future generations’ – 14:50-15:30

Chaired by Ngunan Adamu – Producer/Presenter, BBC Radio Merseyside; BBC International multi-platform trainer; and Founder and CEO, iWoman Academy

Panellists:

Shrouk El-Attar – Lead Senior Electronics Engineer, Emm Technology; Belly Dancer, ‘Dancing Queer’; and refugee

Krystina Pearson-Rampeearee – Senior Flight Systems Engineer, BAE Systems

Asiya Jelani – Account Director, The Future of Transport (TFT)

Laura Hoang – Senior Human Factors Engineering Consultant, ERM

Kim Smith – Regional Lead for Education & Enterprise, the North East Local Enterprise Partnership

Additional information

Location: The Common Room, Westgate Road, Newcastle NE1 1SE

Our building is fully accessible – if you have any queries about accessibility, please contact lucy.stockdale@thecommonroom.org.uk

The Common Room is taking a number of precautions to mitigate the risk to the public regarding COVID-19. Attendees will be encouraged to wear a face covering (unless they have a medical exemption) where possible. We would appreciate it if attendees could complete a lateral flow test prior to attending, and we kindly ask you do not attend if you have had a positive test result for COVID-19, or are experiencing symptoms. For further information on our COVID-19 protocol please email lucy.stockdale@thecommonroom.org.uk

About The Face of Engineering Festival

Did you know that a 2020 EngineeringUK survey (Labour Force Survey Q3 2020) showed that only 14.5% of those working in engineering are female? Here at The Common Room, we are incredibly passionate about supporting a diverse future workforce in the engineering and wider STEM sectors, to see our society better reflected in the industries, and the products, buildings and spaces they develop.

The Face of Engineering Festival will challenge stereotypes of who an engineer is, celebrate and drive greater representation in the engineering workforce for women, people of colour and LGBTQ+ people, and bring together young people and families to inspire the next generation of innovators and engineers.

We invite everyone from industry professionals to families to join us across 3 days of activity from 7 – 9 April, as we host an Industry Conference, Schools Day and Families Day, led by a range of inspiring women and engineers of colour. To find out more, click here.

The Face of Engineering Festival follows on from our podcast series of the same name, hosted by BBC Radio Presenter, Ngunan Adamu. The podcast series celebrated a group of thirteen inspirational female engineers, working across a number of engineering disciplines. Each episode shines a light on the women’s experiences of engineering and innovation – showcasing and championing the important role women play in engineering and STEM careers. Click here to listen to the podcast on our website, or you can find it across streaming platforms, including Spotify.

#TheFaceOfEngineering Festival has been made possible thanks to National Lottery Players (National Lottery Heritage Fund), plus our supporters The Reece Foundation, NA College, The Platten Family Fund (via Community Foundation Tyne & Wear and Northumberland), Stadler, Nexus, Turner & Townsend, EngineeringUK, Crowne Plaza Newcastle – Stephenson Quarter, North East Local Enterprise Partnership, and Women in Transport.