PRME Regional Chapter UK and Ireland, 6th Annual Conference

Registration desk located in Liberty Building atrium

University of Leeds Sustainability Service
Please register in advance for this activity. The walk will involve a tour of sustainability and community initiatives installed on campus. Delegates will begin the walk from the Liberty Building.

Professor Julia Bennell (Deputy Dean, Leeds University Business School)
Dr Matthew Davis (Chair of the Conference Organising Committee)
Dr Alec Wersun (Chair of the PRME Regional Chapter for UK and Ireland)

Keynote speaker 1

Heineken in Africa: A multinational unleashed

Speaker: Olivier van Beemenl (Investigative Journalist)
Discussion host: Professor Frank McDonald (Leeds University Business School)

Olivier’s talk centres on his book “Heineken in Africa: A Multinational Unleashed”. The book is the result of six years of thorough journalistic research, not only in thirteen African countries where the Dutch multinational is operating, but also in the company’s archives and academic literature. An interactive discussion follows the keynote talk.

Keynote panel 1

Business ethics in international supply chains

Chris McCann (Founder of Resilient.World, Commissioner for Ethics and Sustainable Development at the Royal Institute of British Architects)
Profesoor Chris Megone (Director of Interdisciplinary Ethics Applied, University of Leeds)
Discussion Host: Professor Hinrich Voss (Leeds University Business School)

Revelations about workers’ conditions in the factory producing the Spice Girls’ Comic Relief T-shirts have highlighted just one of the ethical challenges for businesses operating within a global supply network. The panel will discuss their experience and perspective regarding the challenges for businesses operating international supply chains and how ethical business practices can be encouraged.

Workshop 1

PRME 2070?

Professor John Wilson (Donghua University)
Dr Alec Wersun (Glasgow Caledonian University)

The workshop is based on the facilitators’ ongoing ‘futures’ research into alternative futures for the UNs PRME way beyond the UN’s 2030 Agenda.

Paper Session 1

Collaborations and partnerships

Chair: Dr Alex Hope (Northumbria University)

Professor Ted Fuller (University of Lincoln)
Dr Dave Webb (University of Western Australia)
Rob Compton (Cass Business School)

Paper Session 2

PRME seed funding competition winner

Chair: Professor Sheila Killian (University of Limerick)

Dr Aurore Bardey (London College of Fashion)

Workshop 2

University engagement with SDGs

Dr Louise Ellis (University of Leeds Sustainability Service)

This workshop will provide an overview of how the University of Leeds has engaged with and embedded the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into their research and operations. It will aim to share experience that delegates could consider for application at their own institutions.

Energising and icebreaking session:

Why improv?

Ryan Offutt (Work Psychologist & Professional Development Trainer)

Informal BBQ held in the Terrace Bar (Leeds University Union).

Professor Peter Moizer (Leeds University Business School Executive Dean)
Dr Matthew Davis (Chair of the Conference Organizing Committee)

Keynote panel 2

Approaches to Fostering Diversity & Equality in the Workplace (SDG 10.2, 5.5)

Professor Binna Kandola OBE (Senior Partner at Pearn Kandola)
Jane Kidd (European Talent & Inclusion and Diversity Manager at Kellogg)
Sophie Seddon (Head of Client Engagement and Communication at Novus Property Solutions)
Discussion Host: Professor Kerrie Unsworth (Leeds University Business School)

Many business leaders profess that diversity and equality are priorities for their organisations, yet aspiration often fails to reflect boardroom or corporate reality. Our panel share their experience of approaches used to foster diversity and equality. They reflect on the challenges that they see for businesses attempting to build a diverse workforce and consider the social, psychological and business factors that can influence success.

Keynote Panel 3

Davide Stronati (Global Sustainability Leader of Mott MacDonald)
Bruce Learner (Senior CSR Manager at Kellogg Europe)
Katie Thomas (Low Carbon and Circular Economy Lead for York, North Yorkshire & East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership)
Discussion Host: Dr Mark Sumner (School of Design, University of Leeds)

The SDGs present business with a wide array of challenges to tackle. How can businesses identify the challenges most relevant to them? What practical approaches can businesses adopt? The panellists will share examples from their own organisations, highlighting the opportunities to reduce waste within the food industry, to tackle the big sustainability challenges in construction of collaborative action across whole regions and of the complexity of mapping against the SDG framework.

Keynote speaker 2

The myth of the ethical consumer

Speaker: Professor Timothy Devinney (University Leadership Chair at Leeds University Business School)
Discussion Host: Professor Chris Megone (Director of Interdisciplinary Ethics Applied, University of Leeds)

For decades people have been predicting the rise of the role of ethical attributes to influence individual decisions.  Despite survey after survey and article after article arguing that the ethical wave was driving consumption, investment and hiring, the reality has been more depressing.  Most large-scale corporate efforts on this front have failed to live up to expectations. The discussion is aimed at putting a dose of realism into the ethical consumption, investment and employment reality and ask what sort of research is needed to understand what truly influences individual decision making.

Workshop 3A

Karla Prime (Northumbria University)
Dr Emmanueal Arakpogun (Newcastle Business School)  

The workshop will introduce the Model United Nations and freehand drawing technique as innovative and creative educational approaches to introduce students to the SDGs and their impact on sustainable and responsible business in a global business environment. D

Workshop 3B

Dr Alex Hope (Co-Chair for PRME Working Group on Climate Change and Environment)
Professor Carole Parkes (Co-Chair for PRME Working Group on Poverty, a Challenge for Management Education)
Dr Alec Wersun (Ambassador for PRME Working Group on Sustainability Mindset)

An opportunity to learn about the work of the different PRME working groups, current projects and activities. This will provide delegates with an opportunity to get involved with the PRME global community.

Paper Session 2

Chair: Dr Jennie Robinson (Leeds University Business School)

Dr Laura Steele (Queen's Management School)
Professor Sheila Killian, Dr John Lannon, Dr Liam Murray, Dr Gabriela Avram, Dr Marta Giralt & Stephanie O'Riordan (University of Limerick)
Dr Yvonne Moogan and Dr Jen Dyer (University of Leeds)

Chair: Dr Alec Wersun (PRME Regional Chapter for UK and Ireland)

PRME Regional Chapter for UK and Ireland Annual General Meeting. An ideal opportunity for member input to the design of Chapter’s programme of activities in the year ahead.

Paper Session 3:

Chair: Professor Sheila Killian (University of Limerick)

Dr Lila Skountridaki (University of Stirling)
Dr Mikko Laamanen (Royal Holloway)
Dr Soheil Davari (Hertfordshire Business School)
Dr Darren McGuire (University of Stirling) 

Drinks reception followed by a locally sourced vegan dinner at University House.

Professor Nicholas Scott (Leeds University Business School Pro Dean for Education)
Dr Matthew Davis (Chair of the Conference Organizing Committee)

Paper Session 4

Chair: Professor Carole Parkes (University of Winchester)

Chloe Scott (University of Hertfordshire)
John Hirst (Durham University Business School)
Swati Bhargava (Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad)
Kali Gibson (Glasgow Caledonian University)

Workshop 4

How can businesses and academia address the problem of plastic waste?

Dr Helen Goworek (University of Leicester)
Dr Christine Gillian (Sheffield Hallam University)
Colleagues from North and Midlands PRME Regional Network

This workshop aims to share and develop ideas around plastic waste and how we can address it in academia. It is based on a workshop held in Sheffield in April 2019 on the topic of how businesses and academia can contribute to the sustainability agenda at a local level by addressing the problem of plastic waste.

Paper Session 5

Chair: Dr Jonathan Louw (Oxford Brookes University)

Dr Andy Brookes (University of Lincoln)
Nkeiruka Ndubuka (Robert Gordon University)
Dr Guénola Nonet (Jönköping International)
Rasha Ashraf Abdelbadie (Assiut University/Newcastle University)
Dr Amir Keshtiban & Mr Mark Gatto (Northumbria University)

Energising Session

Laughter for Wellbeing

Dr Natalie van der Wal (Academic and Laughter Yoga Teacher)

In this quick-fire session Natalie will explain why laughter may really be the best medicine and demonstrate how laughter therapy can be used to enhance wellbeing at work. The workshop is a fun, interactive introduction to laughter therapy techniques. Audiences will be encouraged to smile, laugh and energise themselves, ready for the final conference sessions. 

Paper Session 6

Chair: Dr Martin Schnauss (ZHAW, Zurich)

Louisa Hill and Dr Jennie Robinson (Leeds University Business School)
Ovalia Rukmana, Dr Fernando Correia and Dr Geetha Karunanayake (University of Hull)
Xiang Li (Zhejiang Xiezhi Institute of Entrepreneurship)
Professor John Wilson (Donghua University)

Paper Session 7

Chair: Dr Andy Brookes (University of Lincoln)

Dr Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas (London College of Fashion)
Isabel Fischer (University of Sussex)
Peter McCullen (Brighton Business School, University of Brighton)
Nishat Azmat (Birmingham Business School)

Workshop 5

University Communities and Climate Change Strategies

Dr Jonathan Busch, Dr Jen Dyer and Dr Chris Lyons (University of Leeds)

This workshop focuses on a methodology to create visions for a Climate Active Civic University. Three Horizons is a methodological approach for envisioning radical system-level changes and identifying pathways to get there while also making use of business-as-usual strengths. It is designed to articulate both unsustainable present-day practices as well as what a transformed future might look like for groups navigating complex and dynamic environments.

Keynote Speaker 3

Rethinking the Purpose of Business Schools:  To Responsible Management Education and Beyond

Speaker: Professor Helen Williams (Associate Dean for Learning and Teaching at Cardiff Business School)
Discussion Host: Dr Matthew Davis (Leeds University Business School)

Professor Williams’ talk questions how responsible management education can be achieved and how business school’s can support this mission. Cardiff Business School’s public value approach is provided as an example of how School level, strategic action can be leveraged to support individual or programme level actions. Prof. Williams reflects on the challenges that responsible management education poses and questions whether business schools alone can tackle this.

Dr Alec Wersun (Chair of the PRME Regional Chapter for UK and Ireland)