Anyi Hobson

Founder
SEAM Advisory

Anyi Hobson is a member of the Royal Docks Enterprise Zone Programme Board. 

She is the founder of SEAM Advisory, specialising in embedding and linking environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles into the built environment. With over 30 years of experience spanning real estate, retail, fashion, finance, cultural placemaking and sustainability regulations across the UK, EU and the US, Anyi brings a wealth of insight into inclusive regeneration, sustainable development and long-term investment strategy.

Throughout her career, Anyi has delivered impactful work advising investors, developers and occupiers, and managing flagship portfolios for J. Safra Real Estate, The Grosvenor Estate and Commerz Real. She has pioneered diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices through her SEAMless Spaces Framework. 

Her extensive background in asset management, stakeholder engagement and governance provides oversight and strategic direction to the Programme Board and strengthens its focus on delivering socially responsible outcomes and fostering economic growth that is equitable, sustainable and resilient.

Fluent in five languages and a frequent speaker on ESG and DEI, Anyi provides a truly global and intersectional perspective.

Professor Christopher Smith, FSAS, FRHistS, FSA, FRSA, MAE, FRSE

Executive Chair
AHRC + UKRI International  + Creative Industries Sector Champion

Christopher was previously Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews where he was also Dean of Arts (2002 to 2006), Provost of St Leonard’s College and Dean of Graduate Studies (2006 to 2009), and Proctor and Vice-Principal (2007 to 2009), before being seconded as Director of the British School at Rome, the UK’s leading humanities and creative arts research institute overseas, from 2009 to 2017.

From 2017 to 2020 he has held a Leverhulme Trust Major Research Fellowship on ‘The Roman kings: a study in power’ and held visiting positions in Erfurt, Princeton, Otago, Pavia, Milan, Siena, Aarhus and Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne.

Professor Smith’s research explores constitutionalism and state formation, with particular emphasis on the development of Rome as a political and social community and how this was represented in ancient historical writing and subsequent political thought.

He is the author or editor of over 20 books and in 2017 was awarded the prestigious Premio ‘Cultori di Roma’. He is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries Scotland, the Royal Historical Society, the Society of Antiquaries of London, the Royal Society of Arts and a Member of the Academia Europaea.

Mark Davy

Founder
Futurecity

 Mark Davy is the Founder of Futurecity, a multi-disciplinary agency set up in 2007 to promote culture-driven placemaking. He sees culture as the guiding narrative for the regeneration and development of towns, cities and regions. Mark has persuaded the private sector to invest in major art projects including the Crossrail Culture Line, the Illuminated River Project and a cultural strategy for Wembley Park. Mark is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a member of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Advisory Panel, a Trustee to Hypha Studios, an Executive Director for the Land Economic Society and a Member of the NLA Expert Panel for Culture and National Trust Regional Advisory Group.

Mike Tucker

Head of Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation
Coram

Mike is Head of Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation, a national cultural education charity that transforms lives through the unique power of Shakespeare. Since the charity was founded in 2000 by the creator of the BBC’s Shakespeare: The Animated Tales series, Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation has engaged more than 340,000 young people in primary, secondary and SEND schools nationwide. Its work supports young people in building their knowledge, confidence and essential skills. Passionate about giving as many children as possible the opportunity to take part in oracy and performance programmes, Mike has worked at the charity for 10 years, following a variety of roles in the higher education sector. Mike studied Law at King’s College London and LSE, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Kirsten Dunne

Senior Manager, Cultural Infrastructure & Public Realm
Mayor of London

Kirsten leads the Space for Culture Team at the Mayor of London's Office. The team works to ensure that culture, creativity and community are hardwired into the fabric of our city, by protecting, creating, improving and promoting the many types of space that make up London’s rich cultural ecosystem. The team is responsible for the delivery of Creative Enterprise Zones, London Made Me pop up & business development programme, Creative Land Trust, Culture & Community Spaces at Risk, Fourth Plinth and Public Commissions, as well as new cultural infrastructure including East Bank and Fashion Residency at Studio Smithfield and supporting cultural organisations and businesses to find appropriate space – often in partnership with new developments. Kirsten was a founding board member of London's Creative Land Trust and Margate's Creative Land Trust and led the team that placed the first statue of a woman in Parliament square.

Kemi Akinola

Deputy Leader
Wandsworth Council - LB of Culture

Kemi Akinola is Deputy leader of Wandsworth Council, and leading on  London borough of culture 2025.

 She is CEO of the charities Be Enriched and Brixton People's Kitchen. Both charities work to tackle food insecurity, social exclusion and food waste in the Wandsworth and Lambeth areas, through Community Canteens and London's first ever Food Bus, an on-board grocery store and café that brings affordable food to those in need. Kemi seeks to increase access to arts and Culture, high-quality, healthy food and in particular improve young people’s aspirations. Kemi is also a trustee of the Independent Food Aid Network and One Drum foundation.

Shazia Hussain

Chief Executive
LLDC

Shazia has over 20 years of senior strategic and operational delivery experience within Local Government that spans parks and open spaces, place making with economic and social regeneration, corporate policy and strategy, community safety and transformational change. Having started her career within regeneration she is committed to improving the social, economic and cultural condition of communities within east London.

 Shazia was appointed as Chief Executive of LLDC in September 2024. Shazia’s focus is driving the third phase of the legacy, ensuring that growth and development are inclusive, and that investment provides east Londoners with the opportunities they need to succeed. Shazia was previously Deputy Chief Executive at the London Borough of Waltham Forest; before her role at Waltham Forest, she was Assistant Chief Executive at Brent Council and before that, Divisional Director for Tower Hamlets - holding roles with accountability for strategic partnerships, service integration, learning and leisure and customer service. Earlier in her career she was Director of Community Development for Leaside Regeneration, providing another strong connection to the regeneration of east London.

Gemma Dean

Head of Development
Creative Land Trust

Gemma is Head of Development at Creative Land Trust, a charity founded to tackle the loss of affordable creative workspace in London. Her work focuses on property partnerships and policy development that facilitates growth and recognises the positive contribution of creative production to sustainable places.

Gemma’s previous experience spans the real estate finance industry having worked on European commercial transactions in banking, restructuring and advisory roles at international firms based in London. Throughout her career, she has championed sustainability and wellbeing, as well as providing business and development advice to arts organisations in London. Gemma is a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and sits on the Building Development Board at the Albany Theatre in Deptford. 

Lola Martinez

Chair
Elevate Board

Tim Reeve CBE

Director and Chief Operating Officer, V&A
and Chair of East Bank Board

Tim Reeve has been Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of the V&A, a family of museums dedicated to the power of creativity, since 2013, where he takes a strategic and operational overview of all museum activities. He is leading the development of V&A East Museum and Storehouse in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, east London, as part of the East Bank cultural and educational legacy, and chairs the East Bank Board ensuring the shared vision of the Mayor of London and the East Bank partners is delivered over the long term. In addition, he leads the V&A's international strategy, including the V&A Gallery at Design Society in Shenzhen, China. Before joining the V&A, Tim was Director of Historic Properties at English Heritage. He is a graduate in Ancient History from Royal Holloway, University of London, and studied at the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) and INSEAD on its International Executive Programme. He has served as a trustee of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA), the National Memorial Arboretum and Paintings in Hospitals. He is currently a trustee of the Canal and River Trust, a member of the Hunterian Strategic Development Board, a Director of V&A Dundee and a member of the Exhibition Road Cultural Group (ERCG).

Laura Flanagan

Marketing Director
Knight Dragon

With 15 years of experience across the property sector, including commercial, residential and placemaking, Laura brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her current role at Knight Dragon. Her career has taken her to New York, Amsterdam and across multiple locations in London including The Shard, and most recently Greenwich Peninsula – Knight Dragon’s flagship London development. Laura sits on the Board of Directors for Knight Dragon, overseeing all marketing and business development activity for the place including Design District, London’s first permanent home for the creative industries. 

Azzees Minott

Managing Director
2-3 Degrees

Justine Simons OBE

Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries
GLA

Justine Simons is Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries. She has played a central role in the cultural transformation of London for two decades. She was awarded an OBE in 2015 by Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth for Services to Culture in London.

Justine founded and is Chair of the World Cities Culture Forum – the principle leadership network on culture and the future of cities, now grown to over 40 global cities reaching across six continents.

She led the capital’s biggest ever festival for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games with over 5000 events and is now overseeing its legacy. East Bank in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, is a new £1 billion culture and education district, the most significant for over 150 years.

She shapes London’s Investment Strategy for the Creative Industries covering film, fashion, games and design, growing their influence on the world stage. She has designed new policy innovations including the world’s first Creative Enterprise Zones, a new Culture at Risk Office to protect fragile cultural infrastructure, established the London Borough of Culture and hardwired culture into London’s planning system with the first Cultural Infrastructure Plan. 

Justine established the Fourth Plinth as the UK’s biggest public sculpture prize, is co-chair of London’s Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm and chaired the Mayor’s Suffrage Statue Commission placing the first statue of a woman in Parliament Square, suffrage campaigner Millicent Fawcett. She positioned culture at the heart of the Let’s Do London recovery campaign, attracting 800,000 visitors and bringing London back to life post pandemic.

Gavin Poole

Chief Executive Officer
Here East

Gavin Poole is the CEO of Here East, a dedicated campus for the technology and creative sectors, which is now home to over 6,500 people. Built out of a bid to transform the former international press and broadcast centre used during the 2012 London Olympic games, the vision for the campus has positioned it as one of the most successful Olympic re-developments.

Gavin is also a Director of Plexal, the innovation centre at Here East, which is focused on utilising technology to deliver national security and prosperity. He also sits on the Tech London Advocates and Global Tech Advocates advisory board for Russ Shaw CBE.

Before starting Here East, Gavin served for over twenty years in the Royal Air Force, starting as an aircraft engineering apprentice and retiring as a Wing Commander. Gavin ran the Centre for Social Justice, a think tank in Westminster. He is also a governor of the University of East London.

Svana Gisla

Producer
Abba Voyage

Svana Gisla has played a big part in creating some of the most memorable and impactful visual works in the music industry for almost three decades, having run Ridley Scott Associate’s reputable division of Black Dog Films for sixteen years from 1999-2015. 

In 2015 Gisla won nominations as a producer for both a Grammy and an Emmy award for producing the HBO special of “On The Run” commissioned by Beyonce and Jay Z in Paris. She has produced documentaries and longform entertainment features for the likes Bruce Springsteen, Chemical Brothers, Oasis and the Swedish House Mafia.

In 2015, Svana produced Blackstar and Lazarus for David Bowie for his album Blackstar, directed by Johan Renck. The videos were Bowie’s last visual output before his passing in January 2016. 

Her music video work include award nominated videos for Madonna, Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, Radiohead, Oasis, Kylie Minogue and many others. In 2017 Gisla & Renck got a request from ABBA to make a music video for a project that involved digital copies of the band. The project subsequently dissolved a year and a half later, but the pair took over the basic idea and developed it into a forward facing concert featuring digital copies of ABBA as they were in 1979. 

Renck went on to other projects (Chernobyl, Spaceman). Gisla went on to Produce ABBA Voyage with a team of creatives, experts and specialists from all over Europe. Her co-producer is Ludvig Andersson.