Indian Urban Future Speakers

Autif Mohammed Sayyed is the technical lead of the Asia and Pacific green building program for the International Finance Corporation, a part of the World Bank Group. He has led IFC’s work on developing green building codes and policies in Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, China and Mongolia. He is currently supporting the rollout of EDGE green building certification in Asia and IFC’s green building educational program in multiple universities globally.

“To break away from the regular practice is never easy, but the rewards are plenty as exemplified by the winners of WGBC APN awards over the years. The caring hands and minds behind these projects stretch the limits of design and performance of their buildings to achieve greater comfort for their occupants, lower expenses for their owners and lighter footprint on the environment. A win-win situation for all”

Camilla Ween is an architect, urban planner and Harvard University Loeb Fellow. She worked for Transport for London for 11 years and advised the Mayor of London on the implications for transport plus land use policy and development - and also developed the planning policy for many of London's key growth areas.

Camilla regularly lectures at Harvard, other universities and international institutions such as the Shanghai Planning Forum. She is chair of the trustees of the Spacelink Learning Foundation (which helps promote science studies in schools by bringing space technology and science into the classroom) plus a member of the iMobility Future Vision and the Academy of Urbanism. She is also acting president of the London Chapter of the Women's Transport Seminar.

After graduating from university, he worked as a Catholic priest for seven years in southern Tamil Nadu before leaving the church to start a new job as a social worker. Acutely aware of the need for change, Cletus started his own social development programmes in the small town of Cheranmahadevi in 1985, then assisted in poverty alleviation for the marginalised rural communities of the Tuticorin and Tirunelveli districts. He was conferred the Abdul Kalam Seva Ratna Award 2015 in recognition of his exemplary commitment towards societal transformation and notable contribution in achieving sustainable development and realising self-sufficient, peaceful and prosperous communities.

Dr Richard Simmons is an urbanist with over 35 years’ experience of town planning, infrastructure construction, urban regeneration, land acquisition and disposal, housing and urban design; and managing a wide range of public services in the built environment, including transportation and highways, parks and open spaces, economic development, and arts and cultural development. He has worked in senior roles in central and local government and regeneration companies. He was Chief Executive of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the UK government’s adviser on architecture, urban design and public space, from 2004 to 2011.

Girish Visvanathan’s key areas of expertise include the Indian Green Building movement , monitoring trends and upcoming technologies in Green Building Design and Commissioning. He has been Involved in drafting of Indian Green Building Standards at National Level. He is also experienced in energy intensive and energy efficient technologies in lighting, space conditioning, building insulation, day-light designs, natural cooling techniques, and renewable energy production-monitoring. In 2020 he was awarded fellowship of the Indian Green Buidling Council. He is currently developing a platform to estimate the energy/carbon savings potential of a building via digital twin technology.

With a career history taking in central government policymaking, city and regional planning, and urban regeneration and growth at many scales, Neil has a wide perspective on urbanism and development. He is particularly interested in how planning and design influences social and economic outcomes, and a strong believer in widening public understanding of the built environment. Neil holds an honours degree in politics, philosophy and economics from the University of Oxford. He is a Visiting Fellow within the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at Newcastle University, an academician of the Academy of Urbanism and a Fellow of the RSA.

Nicholas Falk started URBED in 1976 as a not for profit research and consultancy firm specialising in urban and economic development and set up the URBED Trust in 2014 to disseminate good practice. With degrees from Oxford, Stanford and London universities he specialises in turning theory into practice. Advising central and local government and leading development companies he has pioneered solutions to regenerating run-down areas, tackling inequalities. Work on Sustainable Urban Neighbourhoods and Garden Cities has won awards. He writes and lectures on learning from European experience in growing smarter cities. By supporting SCAD (Social Change and Development) in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu he is transferring lessons both ways www.smarterurbanisation.org. He lives in Stroud and is also based in London.

For almost 30 years, leading the business from humble beginnings, to being recognised as the leading provider of Gypsy and Traveller services in the south-west of England, as well as providing support services, rented housing and shared ownership schemes. He has had a long association with Elim starting with his role managing the south west regional office of the National Housing Federation in the 1990s, through to his most recent role as Cabinet Member for Homes and Communities at Bristol City Council.

Brian Q Love is a Registered and Chartered Architect, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Member of the Town and Country Planning Association and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Highways and Transport. He is Chief Executive of ConnectedCities, which promotes sustainability by putting public transport at the heart of all new development.

Jitesh is a Masterplanner and a British Chevening Scholar with over 19 years of professional experience in leading diverse teams and projects across 4 continents. He is currently Cities Director at Buro Happold’s Mumbai office. Since 2011 he has worked in leadership roles at the world's leading consulting, infrastructure and engineering firms. Jitesh is passionate about cities, urban development, urban regeneration, urban expansion, technology, sustainability, environment, mobility and infrastructure.

Vimal Karpe is a chartered structural engineer who thrives on challenges, who is passionate about using engineering & technology to create better living outcomes for the society. She holds BTech-MTech dual degree from IIT Kanpur. She has led and delivered buildings projects in residential, commercial, aviation and educational sectors, from concept to construction, in India, UK, Middle East and Far East.

Vimal is part of C:Lab at Buro Happold. C:Lab is a platform where C:labbers are given an opportunity utilize their knowledge and skills to influence real change in the communities we live and work in, each day. Vimal wants to apply her managerial skills, technical know-how and business acumen to build sustainable societies in India.