Opportunities for Young Professional in the UK’s Future Energy system
This event marks the official launch of the University Hub Glasgow, kindly hosted by the University of Strathclyde, as a dedicated platform for connecting academia and industry within the UK’s future energy sector. The inaugural programme features keynote presentations and an interactive panel discussion designed to explore and promote career development opportunities for young professionals by aligning cutting‑edge research with real‑world industry needs. Attendees will gain valuable insights from subject‑matter experts, network with industry advisors, and engage with the wider energy community to help shape the next generation of energy professionals
Event Date
Tuesday 19th May 2026 | 13:30 – 16:50
Event Location
University of Strathclyde, Royal College Building, 204 George Street Glasgow
Agenda
13:30 | Welcome and Introduction to the Glasgow Hub – Dr Di Liu & Prof Qiteng Hong
14:00 | A decade of SP Energy Networks initiatives enhancing power system resilience – Eric Leavy, Univeristy of Strathclyde
14:35 |You may ask yourself: well, how did I get here? Work at the intersection of policy, engineering and education – Keith Bell, University of Strathclyde
15:20 | Panel discussion –
Dr. Adam Dysko, University of Strathclyde
Dr. Calum Mackinnon, Power Networks Demonstration Centre
Prof. Eric Leavy, Visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde
Prof. Keith Bell, University of Strathclyde
Dr. Lois Efe, Scottish and Southern Electricity Network
Prof. Qiteng Hong, University of Strathclyde
16:20 | Closing remarks, gorup photo and networking
Travel Information
Train and Bus: The Royal College Building is within a short walking distance of Glasgow Queen Street Station(approximately 5 minutes), Glasgow Central Station(approximately 15 minutes) and Buchanan Bus Station Glasgow(approximately 10 minutes).
Car Parking: more parking information, please find Car Parking.
Speakers:
Eric Leavy lives in East Lothian and has spent over 50 years since graduation from the University of Strathclyde working in a wide variety of roles in the Scottish Power Transmission and Distribution networks. He has been involved in all aspects of construction, maintenance, asset management and network operations as a working engineer and then in various middle and senior management positions having responsibility for field staff, contractor management, operational control room activities and customer service. Since 2010 Eric has been responsible for leading and overseeing the development of major transmission reinforcement, network modernisation and connections proposals and the process leading to approval of these schemes for investment. A particular passion of Eric’s since the early days has been supporting and delivering actions towards enhancing network restoration and resilience capabilities including all fault responses up to nationwide Black Start.
Keith Bell holds the Scottish Power Chair in Future Power Systems at the University of Strathclyde where he has been since 2005. He gained his PhD at the University of Bath in 1995 and then worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Manchester and in Naples and as a system development engineer with National Grid.
Keith is a co-Director of the UK Energy Research Centre and, in April 2019, became a member of the UK’s Climate Change Committee. A Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, he has advised the Scottish, UK and Irish governments and Ofgem on electrical energy and power systems issues and is active in CIGRE, the International Council of Large Electric Systems. He is also on the Executive Committees of the IET Power Academy, an initiative to encourage graduate engineers into the power and energy sector, and the Power Systems Computation Conference. He was on the Electricity Networks Commissioner’s advisory group and is a member of Ofgem’s climate resilience expert panel.