Speakers of the 9th edition (2024)

Mike Berners-Lee is a keynote speaker on sustainability and on how we can address this overarching 21st century challenge. He is the founder of Small World Consulting, an associate company of Lancaster University, which is a world leader in the field of supply chain carbon metrics and management. Small World works with organisations of all sizes and sectors, from the world’s largest tech giants to SMEs. Mike is a professor at Lancaster University, where his research includes sustainable food systems and carbon metrics. He has made numerous speaking, radio and television broadcast appearances to promote public awareness of sustainability and climate change issues, and most notably appeared in Climate Change: The Facts alongside Sir David Attenborough. He is the author of three acclaimed books.

His 2019 book, There Is No Planet B: A Handbook for the Make or Break Years is a practical and holistic tour of the 21st century’s biggest challenges, laced throughout with practical guidance for individuals, businesses and politicians. An updated version of this book was published by Cambridge University Press in early 2021.

On his first book, How Bad Are Bananas? The Carbon Footprint of Everything, Bill Bryson wrote “I can’t think of the last time I read a book that was more fascinating, and useful and enjoyable all at the same time”. A fully updated version of this book was published in Summer 2020.

His book, The Burning Question, co-written with Duncan Clark, explores the big picture on climate change and the underlying global dynamics, asking what mix of politics, economics, psychology and technology are really required to deal with the problem. Al Gore described it as “Fascinating, important and highly recommended”.

Mike has a degree in Physics from Oxford University, a PGCE in Outdoor Education and Physics from Bangor, and an MSc in Organisational Development and Consulting from Sheffield Hallam University.