Knowledge is GREAT Lecture Series | British Council Singapore

About this programme

The British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lecture Series - or the GREAT Lectures, for short - showcases UK's knowledge, creativity and innovation through leading UK specialists in areas of topical debate and discussion.

Throughout the year, the British Council in Singapore organises and hosts a variety of lectures on diverse topics such as arts, environment, sciences and more, aimed at academics, practitioners, students and the general public.

Our inaugural lecture in 2015, featured Professor Peter Abrahams from Warwick Medical School on the topic, Leonardo da Vinci - A 15th century anatomist whose artistic and conceptual ideas anticipated 21st century radiology.

Since then, we have collaborated with numerous institutions, organisations, both in the UK and Singapore, to constantly bring exciting and high profile lectures to Singapore.

For more information about the lectures, email education@britishcouncil.org.sg

British Council GREAT Lectures 2022

Title	Speaker	Role and Organisation	Event Information
Energy harvesting and new sensors - what the future holds	Prof. Chris Bowen	Associate Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Design, University of Bath	25 August 2022 Event information and video recording is here
Local Knowledge, Global Networks: Digital Futures for Higher Education	Prof. Howard Hotson	Professor of Early Modern Intellectual History, University of Oxford	26 May 2022 Event information and video recording is here
Turning the Tide on Plastic Pollution	Prof. John McGeehan	Director, Centre for Enzyme Innovation University of Portsmouth	28 April 2022 Event information and video recording is here

British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lectures 2021

Title	Speaker	Role and Organisation	Event Information
The Ethics of Triage: Philosophy in the Time of Covid-19	Prof. Wayne Martin	Professor, School of Philosophy and Art History University of Essex	25 November 2021 Event information and video recording is here
CelebrAGE: celebrating ageing	Dr. Mine Orlu	Associate Professor in Pharmaceutics University College London	28 October 2021 Event information and video recording is here
Transformational entrepreneurship: a novel approach to sustainable socio-economic development	Prof. Gideon Maas	Executive Director, International Centre for Transformational Entrepreneurship Coventry University	30 September 2021 Event information and presentation deck is here
Enhancing Cyber Security via AI and Big Data	Dr. Leonardo Aniello	Assistant Professor, School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton	26 August 2021 Event information and video recording is here
The Myth of the Autonomous Vehicle	Dr. Jack Stilgoe	Associate Professor of Science and Technology Studies University College London	15 July 2021 Event information and video recording is here
The Future of Manufacturing is Now	Prof. Hamid Mughal OBE	Special Advisor to the Principal University of Strathclyde	24 June 2021 Event information and video recording is here
Energy megaprojects: is bigger always better?	Dr. Benjamin K. Sovacool	Professor of Energy Policy Science Policy Research Unit University of Sussex	27 May 2021 Event information and video recording is here
Is the future of work online? How online labour markets change the world of work	Dr. Fabian Stephany	Researcher in Social Data Science Oxford Internet Institute (OII) University of Oxford	29 April 2021 Event information and video recording is here
If Nature is the Solution, what is the Problem?	Prof. Harriet Bulkeley	Professor of Geography Durham University	25 March 2021 Event information and video recording is here
Is climate change really that bad?	Prof. Ilan Kelman	Professor of Disasters and Health University College London	25 February 2021 Event information and video recording is here
Rising Tides: Sustainability across our Blue Planet	Dr Ivan Haigh	Associate Professor in Coastal Oceanography University of Southampton	28 January 2021 Event information and video recording is here

Upcoming lectures will be listed on our Events page.

British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lecture 2020

Title	Speaker(s)	Role and Organisation
Balance is the new normal-The effects of COVID-19 on future built-environment thinking	Professor Jason Pomeroy	Founder Principal, Pomeroy Studio

Ben Crystal, British Council in Singapore — Ben Crystal ©
British Council in Singapore

Notable British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lecture 2018

Title	Speaker(s)	Role and Organisation
Ensuring High Quality Healthcare through Education	Professor Lynn Kilbride	Dean, School of Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Dundee
Truth and Social Media	Professor A. C. Grayling	Master, New College of the Humanities and Supernumerary Fellow, St Anne's College, Oxford
Disability and Leadership in the Cultural Sector	Jo Verrent	Speaker, Writer, Activist
Designing Inclusive Interactions	Graham Pullin Dr Daiana Beitler Mario Van Der Meulen	Programme Director, Digital Interaction Design, University of Dundee Regional Director, Asia, Microsoft Philanthropies Principal Designer, Foolproof Singapore
Artificial Intelligence in the Past, Present and what it holds for the future	Professor Sir Michael Brady FRSFREng FMedSci	Emeritus Professor at the University of Oxford Chairman, Perspectum Diagnostics and Head of Image Analysis

Notable British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lecture 2017

Title	Speaker(s)	Role and Organisation
State of the World's Plants: Unearthing the Valuable and the Vulnerable	Professor Monique Simmonds OBE	Deputy Director of Science, Royal Botanic Gardens
An Evening with Dame Nancy Rothwell and Sir Andre Geim	Professor Sir Andre Geim Professor Nancy Rothwell	Nobel Laureate President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Manchester
Shakespeare on Toast - and the Original Pronunciation	Mr Ben Crystal	Actor, Author, Producer
Enough of Experts: Trust. credibility and the academy in a post-truth age	Sir Richard Dearlove KCMG OBE	Chair, University of London Board of Trustees and Former Chief MI6
	Professor Bob O'Keefe	Vice-Principal and Dean of Management and Economics, Royal Holloway University of London
	Dr Mary Stiasny	Pro Vice-Chancellor (International) and Chief Executive, University of London International Programmes
	Mr Emmanuel Daniel	Chairman and Founder, The Asian Banker
Women in Science	Professor Doreen Cantrell CBE, FRS, FRSE, FMedSci	Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow, University of Dundee
Women in Science	Professor Birgitte Lane FRSE, FMedSci	Executive Director, A*Star's Institute of Medical Biology
The Journalism of Politics and the Politics of Journalism	Bridget Kendall MBE	Master, Peterhouse Cambridge
Work and Wellbeing in an Ageing Society	Professor Dame Carol Black DBE, FRCP, FMedSci	Principal, Newnham College Cambridge
Climate Change: The Greatest Opportunity of our Age	Professor Sir David King	UK Foreign Secretary's Special Representative for Climate Change

Notable British Council 'Knowledge is GREAT' Lecture 2016

Title	Speaker(s)	Role and Organisation
The Wars of the Roses: The Real Game of Thrones	Dr Suzannah Lipscomb MA, MSt, DPhil (Oxon), FRHistS	Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History and Fellow at New College of the Humanities (NCH)
Ten Cities That Made an Empire	Dr. Tristram Hunt MP	Member of Parliament (Labour Party) for Stoke-on-Trent Central, Senior Lecturer in Modern British History at Queen Mary, University of London
In Conversation with Professor Brian Cox and the University of Manchester	Professor Brian Cox OBE	Professor of Particle Physics at the University of Manchester and The Royal Society Professor for Public Engagement in Science
An Evening with Graham Sheffield CBE	Graham Sheffield CBE	Director of Arts, British Council

Collaborations with Institutions and Organisations


University of the Arts London	Newnham College, University of Cambridge
University of Birmingham	New College of the Humanities
British High Commission	Ngee Ann Polytechnic
Clifford Chance	University of Oxford
Coventry University	Perspectum Diagnostic
Cranfield School of Management	Peterhouse, University of Cambridge
University College London	Pomeroy Studio
University of Dundee	University of Portsmouth
Durham University	Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
University of Edinburgh	Royal College of Art
University of Essex	Skills Future SG, Lifelong Learning Institute
Energy Institute	Singapore Art Museum
Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay	Singapore Botanic Gardens
Goldsmiths, University of London	Singapore International Foundation
Intercultural Theatre Institute	Singapore Management University
King's College London	Singapore Repertory Theatre
LASALLE College of the Arts	University of Sheffield
University of London	University of Southampton
University of Manchester	University of Strathclyde
Microsoft	University of Sussex
National Arts Council	Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS)
National Gallery Singapore	The Glasgow School of Art
Newnham College, University of Cambridge	University of Warwick

Comments by participants

‘We simply wish to pass on our thanks and appreciation for an interesting and enjoyable evening at the 'Enough of Experts' Panel Discussion yesterday evening. Of course, this is not the only talk/event we have enjoyed and our thanks extend to those we have attended but not followed up with our compliments. You and your colleagues not only bring about an interesting programme of content and speakers, but manage to create a very relaxed and accessible atmosphere and feeling.

Last night, particularly, afforded great opportunities to have a conversation with each of the Panelists, who did their strolling around so professionally and personably. It was simply a 'Best of British(ness)' evening.’

Videos

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