List of the United Kingdom's Top 50 Influential Women in Engineering
In 2016 the Women's Engineering Society (WES), in collaboration with the Daily Telegraph, produced an inaugural list of the United Kingdom's Top 50 Influential Women in Engineering,[1] which was published on National Women in Engineering Day on 23 June 2016.[2][3][4] The event was so successful it became an annual celebration. The list was instigated by Dawn Bonfield MBE, then Chief Executive of the Women's Engineering Society.[5] In 2019, WES ended its collaboration with the Daily Telegraph and started a new collaboration with The Guardian newspaper.[6]
Since 2016 a new theme has been used each year to showcase the variety of roles within the engineering industry and champion even more women engineers. The themes have been as follows:
2017: Most Influential Women in Engineering Under 35
2016: Most Influential Women in Engineering
2016 Winners: Most Influential Women in Engineering
The judging panel[8] was chaired by Dawn Bonfield MBE, and included Leon Krill from the Daily Telegraph, Allan Cook CBE, chairman of Atkins, Professor John Perkins, author of the Engineering Skills Survey from the University of Manchester,[9] Fiona Tatton, editor of Womanthology[10] and Michelle Richmond, director of membership and professional development at the Institution of Engineering and Technology.[11]
Naomi Climer FREng, CEng, FIET president, IET, Institution of Engineering and Technology
Susan Dio chief executive officer, BP Shipping Limited
Dr Michèle Dix CBE, CEng, FICE, FCIHT, FCILT managing director, Crossrail 2, Transport for London (TfL)
Professor Dame Ann Dowling president of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Cambridge
Elizabeth Eastaugh global head - customer experience, Expedia
Dawn Elizabeth Elson CEng, FICE, FIMechE, FRAeS, FWES group engineering director, Merlin Entertainments Group
Jane Gartshore FInstR director, Cool Concerns Ltd
Professor Lynn Gladden CBE, FRS, FREng Shell Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Cambridge
Dr Paulina Bohdanowicz-Godfrey director energy and environment, Hilton Worldwide
Dr Connie Wilson, Senior Systems Engineer, BAE Systems Maritime – Naval Ships
Kate Young, Senior Mechanical Engineer, Skanska
Ellie Zemani, Project Engineer, Spirit Energy
2019 Winners (Theme: Current and Former Apprentices)
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (January 2020)
The event was held at the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2019 and the Women's Engineering Society moved to collaborate with the Guardian newspaper, who published a supplement containing details of the winners on the 24 June 2019 to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day 2020.[14][15] The date also marked 100 years since the formation of the Society. The judging panel consisted of Head Judge Dawn Fitt OBE, Bedford College, Dawn Childs, President, Women's Engineering Society, Julie Dakin, Mott Macdonald, Elizabeth Donnelly, CEO, Women's Engineering Society, John McCollum, BAE Systems, Alex Walker, Ford, and Will Whittow, the WES Men As Allies winner 2017, and senior lecturer at Loughborough University.
In 2020 the Women's Engineering Society moved away from what women engineers are to what women engineers do and called for nominations for the Top 50 Women in Sustainability. The winners were announced during a live webinar on the 23 June 2020 to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day. The judging panel consisted of Head Judge Sally Sudworth, Environment Agency, Ann-Christin Andersen,Rotork Board Member, Richard Coackley, Past President & Sustainability Leader, Institution of Civil Engineers, Andrew Conway, director of Engineering, BAI Communications, Elizabeth Donnelly, CEO, Women's Engineering Society, Louise Kingham, CEO Institute of Energy, Davide Stronati, Global Sustainability Leader, Mott Macdonald, and Joanna Wood, Group Engineering Director, BAE Systems.[16]
Yasmin Ali, energy innovation project manager, UK Government, Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Laura Bishop, director, Infinitas Design
Laura Brown, Energy Research Programme Manager, Newcastle University
Adele Carey, Senior Sustainability Engineer, Arup
Ellie Cosgrave, Lecturer In Urban Innovation And Policy, UCL
Carla Denyer, Councillor, Bristol City Council
Pamela Dugdale, Engineering Teacher, International Study Centre Liverpool John Moores University
Rhiannon Evans, Technician, Aecom
Laura Frost, associate, Cities & Climate Change, Arup
Ritu Garg, Senior Transport Engineer, Arup
Barnali Ghosh, Technical Director, Mott Macdonald
Rachel Gomes, associate professor, Chemical And Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham
Deborah Greaves, Head Of School Of Engineering, Computing And Mathematics, University of Plymouth
Sandy Halliday, director, Gaia Group
Caireen Hargreaves, Associate Director Product Sustainability, AstraZeneca
Kelly Harrison, associate, Heyne Tillett Steel
Martha Hart, Senior Consultant, Arup
Laura Hepburn, director, Greenology
Katherine Ibbotson, Programme Carbon And Cost Manager, Environment Agency
Michelle Johnson, Technical Director, Wood Environment and Infrastructure UK
Jennifer Kelly, associate, Arup
Eftychia Koursari, Civil Engineer, Amey
Clare Lavelle, Energy Consulting Leader - Scotland, Arup
Claire Lucas, associate professor (Reader), University of Warwick
Xuanli Luo, research associate, The University of Nottingham
Brogan MacDonald, Structural Engineer, Ramboll
Mercedes Maroto-Valer, Champion UK Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre, Heriot-Watt University
Kerry Mashford, Non-Executive Director, Portfolio
Senamiso Mathobela, Delivery Manager (TNCC), National Grid UK
Mhairi McCann, Founder & CEO, Youth STEM 2030
Gill Nowell, DSO Lead, Electralink
Rachel Oliver, professor, director of the Cambridge Centre for Gallium Nitride, CSO of Poro Technology, University of Cambridge
Jo Parker, director, Watershed Associates
Sally Povolotsky, Low Carbon Business Development Consultant, Straight 6 Design
Philippa Ross, associate director, Atkins
Anusha Shah, Director - Resilient Cities, Arcadis
Sandra Šlihte, Head Of Engineering, Vattenfall Heat UK
Holly Smith, Civil Engineer, Skanska UK
Chitra Srinivasan, Real Time Control Software Engineer, UK Atomic Energy Authority
Annie Stapley, Assistant Engineer, WSP
Alisa Stratulat, Innovation Manager, Groupe Atlantic
Petra Szilágyi, lecturer in Functional Materials, Queen Mary University of London
Elizabeth Tennyson, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fellow, University of Cambridge
Camilla Thomson, Chancellor's Fellow In Energy, The University of Edinburgh
Mi Tian, lecturer, University of Exeter
Valeska Ting, Professor of Smart Nanomaterials, University of Bristol
Kusum Trikha, Senior Engineer, WSP
Jana Marie Weber, PhD candidate, University of Cambridge
Laura Williams, Health, Safety, Environment and Quality Advisor, Keller
2021 Winners (Theme: Engineering Heroes)
In 2021 the Women's Engineering Society selected the theme of Engineering Heroes to celebrate the women engineers around the world who played a major role in protecting and defending society from the Covid-19 pandemic. Believing the pandemic to be over by the time of the awards, WES also chose to celebrate women engineers who deliver and maintain critical services and infrastructure, keep civic society functioning at every level, and support lives and livelihoods. The winners were announced on The Guardian[17] and Women's Engineering Society's websites[18] on the 23 June 2021 to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day. A virtual awards ceremony celebrated each winner during a live webinar on the same day.
The judging panel consisted of Head Judge, Professor Catherine Noakes, Simon Barber, UK Managing Director, Assytem WE50 Sponsor, Dawn Childs FREng, UK Change Director, National Grid, Emma Crichton, head of Engineering, Engineers without Borders, Scott Dalrymple, Vice-President HR, Crane, Elizabeth Donnelly, chief executive officer, Women’s Engineering Society, Neil Gibbs, ABB, Frankie Laugier-Davies, Senior Account Manager, Pareto Facilities Management Ltd, Mark McBride Wright, Equal Engineers, Sarah Mogford, Environment and Planning Divisional Director, RSK, Emma Nicholson, Development Project Manager, SLC Rail, Steff Smith MWES, chief executive officer, Institute of Measurement and Control, and Mara Tafadzwa Makoni, Association for Black Engineers (AFBE).[19]
Dr habil Tayebeh Ameri, senior lecturer, University of Edinburgh, School of Engineering
Samidha Anand, Engineering Manager, Caterpillar UK (Perkins Engines Co Ltd)
Phoebe Baker, Construction Manager, Mace
Dr Claire Bennett, Senior Geotechnical Engineer, Arup
Dr Grace Campbell, Senior Natural Hazard and Risk Specialist, Arup
Professor Rebecca Shipley, Professor of Healthcare Engineering, UCL
Dr Maria Sunyer Pinya, Senior Climate Change Consultant, Arup
Dr Larissa Suzuki, Data/AI Practice Lead, Google
Sue Threader, Bridge Clerk (Chief Executive), Rochester Bridge Trust
Hannah Vickers, Chief Executive, Association for Consultancy and Engineering
Julie Wood, director, Arup
2022 Winners (Theme: Inventors and Innovators)
In 2022 the Women's Engineering Society selected the theme of Inventors and Innovators to celebrate the women engineers who demonstrated the creation or improvement of a product or process that makes a difference. The winners were announced on The Guardian and Women's Engineering Society's websites[20] on the 23 June 2022 to celebrate International Women in Engineering Day. The awards were planned to be given at a ceremony at the Institution of Civil Engineers on the same day, but a rail strike on the same day, resulted in its postponement.