National Postdoc Conference 2023 – Keynote speakers

Professor Dame Jessica Corner

Professor Dame Jessica Corner is the Executive Chair for Research England, part of UK Research and Innovation. She leads the biggest research funder in the UK with responsibility for university block-grant funding, unlocking potential, generating impact and meeting national priorities and global challenges.

In her previous role as Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Nottingham, Dame Jessica led a portfolio worth over £900 million. She strategically directed the research, commercialisation and knowledge exchange efforts of close to 3,000 dedicated research colleagues.

Her own research has focused on supportive and palliative care in cancer and long term-health outcomes after treatment for cancer. She led some of the first clinical trials of nurse-led care in the world. Along with her role at Nottingham, Dame Jessica was Registrar for Academy of Medical Sciences.

Hetan Shah

Hetan is chief executive of the British Academy, the UK’s national academy for the humanities and social sciences. He is visiting professor at the Policy Institute, Kings College London. Hetan is a board member of Our World in Data, a website which provides long run data on global challenges such as poverty. He is also a member of the board of The Legal Education Foundation, a philanthropic body supporting a better justice system. Hetan sits on a number of advisory boards, including for the Resolution Foundation, the Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge, and the Pissarides Review of the Future of Work.