Public Lectures at Canterbury Christ Church University

Professor Dame Wendy Hall, Regius Professor of Computer Science, Associate Vice President (International Engagement) and an Executive Director of the Web Science Institute at the University of Southampton, discussed trends in AI and their implications for society including national strategies for AI, geopolitical pressures on AI and data governance, and future scenarios. She laid out why we need to take a socio-technical approach to every aspect of the evolution of AI in society, to ensure that we all reap the benefits of AI and protect ourselves as much as possible from applications of AI that might be harmful.

Dame Lynne Owens, former Director General of the National Crime Agency until October 2021, discussed her career highlights, what it was like to be responsible for security at the Royal Wedding and the visit of President Obama, and why students should consider a career in policing. We also explored the current challenges facing policing and the law enforcement agencies and Dame Lynne’s hopes for the future.

Dame Fiona Reynolds DBE was Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge from 2012 until 2021. She came to the college from the National Trust, where she was Director-General from 2001-2012. During her time there, she made the Trust warmer and more welcoming, bringing the houses to life and raising the profile of the Trust’s work in the countryside. 

Dame Sara Thornton is the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner with a UK-wide remit to encourage good practice in the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of slavery and human trafficking offences and the identification of victims.
Her lecture was titled "Did you know that there are 40 million modern slaves in the world today?" and challenged the audience to care more about the millions of people held in slavery across the globe.
Dame Sara provided an explanation of the prevalence of this crime and the responses to it, arguing that tackling modern slavery is not just a challenge for the criminal justice system, but also needs to be supported by a strong focus on the recovery of survivors and a determined preventative approach. In partic

Darren Henley OBE is Chief Executive of the Arts Council England. He has led two independent reviews into music and cultural education which resulted in England’s first National Plan for Music Education, new networks of Music Education Hubs, Cultural Education Partnerships and Heritage Schools, the Museums and Schools programme, the BFI Film Academy and the National Youth Dance Company.

Hosted by the University’s Politics and International Relations programme and in partnership with the Canterbury and District Inter-Faith Action (CANDIFA) and The Canterbury Society, the prospective parliamentary candidates from the Conservative Party, the Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats and an independent candidate attended Meet the Candidates for the 2019 General Election and made their case to the audience as to why they should be elected as Canterbury’s Member of Parliament.

Polling expert Sir John Curtice, Professor of Politics at Strathclyde University in Scotland and Senior Research Fellow at NatCen Social Research will discuss the public’s reaction to the Brexit process in this thought-provoking lecture. 

At this pivotal time in our nation’s history, Archbishop Justin Welby sets out to identify the values that can help us to reimagine, and to enact, a more hopeful future for our country. Drawing on the Bible, Britain’s history and its Christian tradition, Archbishop Justin explores how we can build on our past to offer hope for the future, suggesting practical ways to help achieve a cohesive, courageous and resilient society. Archbishop Justin was installed as the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury in March 2013. Prior to this, he was Bishop of Durham from 2011 to 2012 and Dean of Liverpool Cathedral from 2007 to 2011. He was ordained in 1992 following an 11-year career in the oil industry.

The Climate Change Act (2008) enshrines our emissions reduction targets in UK legislation; however, the majority of our environmental regulation – critical to our progress in addressing risks such as flooding, drought, heatwaves – is from the EU, which also provides the critical enforcement function. 

The Rt Hon John Bercow, Speaker of the House of Commons, discusses the Speakership, the modernisation of Parliament and the importance of opening up our democratic processes.