Professor Klaus Fischer, Head of the Graduate School, reports on this year's conference: 'Innovation and Community: Research for a Sustainable Future'.
Date: 9 - 10 July 2025
London Met's sixth Student and Staff Research Conference was a great success that both showcased and enhanced our postgraduate research community and showed our aspirations and values in action.
It was opened by our Vice-Chancellor Professor Julie Hall and, for the first time, took place in the Great Hall, which provided an excellent setting for the conference’s plenary format and the accompanying poster exhibition. Students and staff from all six schools contributed 15-minute papers or 3-minute lightning presentations over two days, addressing innovation in computing and science, sustainability in construction, social justice in relation to gender, child and health protection, and many other topics.
Highlights were the two keynotes by Dr Torange Lang, Reader in Art, Architecture and Design, and Phoebe Kalungi, Public Health Programme Lead for Children and Adolescents in Tower Hamlets. They both addressed issues of innovation and community in the realms of teaching (Torange) and health (Phoebe). Both are alumni of the university, as is Dr Anthony Phipps, Security Design/Consultancy and Design Lead with Lloyds Banking Group, who delivered the well-received closing lecture on digitally securing our future.
Further standout features were the student-organised Vice-Chancellor's PhD Scholars panel and an Innovate UK – Supporting Business-led Innovation panel. The former reported on challenging unexpected encounters that changed research projects for the better or worse. The latter featured three presentations from London Met's Knowledge Transfer Partnership Associates and talks by Dr Edward Cole, Head of ICURe Regional Hub – London & South-East (England), and London Met's Dr Matthew Lam on the ICURe opportunities and application process.
It is a feature of the conference that students are involved in the planning, the chairing of panels and papers, and, very importantly, the judging for prizes.
Fidelis Ejike-Ume, a doctoral student at the Guildhall School of Business and Law and one of our prize judges for this year's conference, highlighted "the amazing presentations" and "impactful research being conducted by the London Met research community within the UK and abroad".
The 2025 prize-winners are:
- Olivia Ibbotson (best 15-minute presentation day 1)
- Torfeh Rahmanzadeh (best 15-minute presentation day 2)
- Natalie Langley (best lightning talk day 1)
- Angeliki Stika (best lightning talk day 2)
- Amin Karamy Moghadam (best poster)
Dr Eirini Meimaridou, PGR Coordinator at the School of Human Sciences and chair of the Postgraduate Research Student and Staff Liaison Forum, commented on "a fantastic two day event":
"The Student-Staff Research Conference was a true celebration of collaborative, impactful research. It was inspiring to see how academic work is being applied to benefit our local communities—and equally powerful to witness how those communities are shaping and enriching our research efforts in return."
"There were so many standout moments that it's hard to choose", she added. "However, one thing that truly stood out was the strong presence and contribution of PhD students. Their involvement was evident across every aspect of the conference—from organising and presenting to leading insightful discussions. This conference continues to showcase the power of student-staff collaboration, and I’m already looking forward to the 2026 conference!"
Congratulations to the prize winners and a big thank you to all student volunteers!
