British particle physicist, BBC presenter, author and musician Professor Brian Cox is a keynote speaker at Times Higher Education’s (THE) World Academic Summit 2024 taking place from 7 to 9 October at The University of Manchester.
Nobel prize winning physicist Professor Sir Andre Geim will also be delivering a keynote speech at the flagship event on Tuesday 8 October in an interview talk titled ‘How graphene has been changing science and technology frontiers.’
Brian Cox is professor of particle physics at The University of Manchester and is speaking at the opening, in conversation style, keynote. He actively promotes science and is well-known for the science programmes he hosts on the BBC. He received an OBE for services to science in 2010, the President’s Medal from the Institute of Physics in 2012 and the Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize in 2012.
Sir Andre Geim is regius professor and Royal Society research professor at The University of Manchester. He has received many international awards and distinctions, including the John Carty Prize from the US National Academy of Sciences and the Copley Medal from the Royal Society. Most notably, he was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for his ground-breaking work on graphene.
THE’s flagship annual higher education summit will feature more than 140 speakers and 450 guests, bringing together thought leaders from across academia, policy, industry and civil society. The agenda will consist of a mixture of keynote talks, panel discussions, seminars, case study conversations, practical workshops, best practice sharing and networking events.
2024 marks the 20th anniversary of graphene being isolated for the first time by professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov at The University of Manchester, for which they won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics. Graphene is the thinnest material in the world, as well as one of the strongest and hardest. This session will discuss a range of topics including Professor Geim's experiences of isolating graphene and its almost limitless potential.
The event, which takes place at The University of Manchester, will focus on the theme: ‘Making a difference: The role of universities in a rapidly changing world.’ It is the key place to discuss how institutions can make a difference, both internally across departments and externally with industry, government and civil society, to advance transformative research and its practical implementation.
Phil Baty, THE’s chief global affairs officer, said: "We are extremely excited to be welcoming, as keynote speakers, Professor Brian Cox and Professor Sir Andre Geim. They are two individuals who have had a massive impact on our world which fits in perfectly with the theme of Times Higher Education’s flagship World Academic Summit – making a difference.
“We are also absolutely thrilled to be hosting our World Academic Summit in partnership with one the world’s most prestigious higher education institutions – The University of Manchester, on the momentous occasion of their 200th anniversary.
“The summit is about making a difference and we are delighted to have the leaders of the world’s higher education community, as well as some of the leading political, business and civil society figures working in higher education come join and collaborate with us in one of the world’s greatest cities – Manchester.”
The summit will feature the exclusive reveal of the world’s most widely recognised, authoritative and prestigious ranking, THE’s World University Rankings 2025, at a gala dinner. This will be followed by an in-depth masterclass from THE’s data team, providing analysis and insight into the key findings, trends and stories from the rankings data.
Tickets are available here for representatives of a university, association, public sector or NGO for £1,695 and are £2,299 for those in a corporate organisation.