Keynote Speakers

Karen Scrivener

Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)

Professor Karen Scrivener, a Professor at EPFL, has dedicated four decades to studying cement and concrete. Her professional journey, transitioning seamlessly between academia and industry, provides her with a distinctive perspective encompassing this captivating material’s scientific underpinnings and practical intricacies.

Central to her research is the imperative to reduce CO2 emissions associated with this vital substance. This commitment has resulted in the development of LC3 cement, a groundbreaking innovation capable of slashing CO2 emissions by up to 40%. Beyond her research contributions, Professor Scrivener holds influential roles in journal editing and spearheads think groups focused on sustainability, further solidifying her stature as one of the most influential figures in the field.

Peter Taylor

Iowa State University (ISU)

Professor Peter Taylor leads internationally recognized research at the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center. His high-impact work has resulted in the development of standard practices such as AASHTO PP 84: Developing Performance Engineered Concrete Pavement Mixtures. Additionally, his research has helped transportation agencies save millions of dollars by preventing premature failures in sawn joints and improving concrete proportioning tools for sustainable concrete mixtures.

Professor Taylor regularly presents at workshops, seminars, and conferences as an invited speaker. The information he presents about current research in concrete technology has a strong impact on the concrete pavement community in the United States and internationally.

Philippa Tumubweinee

University of Cape Town (UCT)

Philippa Nyakato Tumubweinee is an Associate Professor in the Department of Architecture, Planning & Geomatics (APG) at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and convenor of the first-year class in the Bachelor of Architectural Studies at UCT. Tumubweinee is also a researcher at the African Centre for Cities (ACC), the Curator and strategic support for the UCT University of the Futures Project, a board member for the University’s Intellectual Property Advisory Committee (IPAC), and a practicing Architect at Stewart & Partners (S&P) based in Cape Town.
Tumubweinee holds the following qualifications: DPhil, University of the Free State (2019), MArchProf, University of Pretoria (2007), and BAS, University of the Witwatersrand (2002).

Andy van den Dobbelsteen

Delft University of Technology (DTU)

Andy van den Dobbelsteen is full professor of Climate Design & Sustainability and Sustainability Coordinator of TU Delft. In that latter function he was awarded CSR Manager of the Year in 2023. In 2024 he ended first in ABN AMRO’s Sustainable 50. Earlier, he was knighted for his work and received the KIVI Academic Society Award for the way he communicates in the media.
At TU Delft, Andy teaches students how to design sustainable buildings and cities. He was ‘faculty advisor’ to three successful TU Delft Solar Decathlon teams and is responsible for the online course Zero-Energy Design, winner of the edX Online Prize 2020. His short film Energy Slaves, about energy use in Dutch households, won a Dutch ‘Oscar’ for commissioned films.
Together with his team, Andy has conducted many national and international research projects around energy transition, climate adaptation, circularity and other sustainability themes. He has sat on many boards, committees and juries. Andy delivers lectures, nationally and internationally, and he publishes a lot. In his private time, he writes thrillers.

Madhavi Latha Gali

Indian Institute of Science (IISc)

Madhavi Latha Gali is a Professor of Civil Engineering and the Chair of the Centre for Sustainable Technologies at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, India. She is a fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering. She did her Ph.D. from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. She has 22 years of experience in Civil Engineering teaching, research and practice. Her current research interests include micro to macro of geomechanics, sustainable soil reinforcement, earthquake geotechnical engineering and rock engineering. She is the primary geotechnical consultant to the world’s highest railway bridge constructed across river Chenab in Jammu, India. She was the Editor-in-chief of the Indian Geotechnical Journal published by Springer during 2016-2022 and currently an Associate editor of ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, Geotextiles and Geomembranes and International Journal of Geosynthetics and Ground Engineering. She is the first recipient of the Best Woman Researcher in Geotechnical Engineering award from the Indian Geotechnical Society. She has also received Prof. S. K. Chatterjee outstanding researcher award of IISc, SERB POWER fellowship and she is listed in the top 75 women in STEAM of India.

Jochen Köhler

Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)

Professor Jochen Köhler is an expert in structural reliability, risk-based decision-making, and probabilistic modeling. He holds a Ph.D. in engineering sciences from ETH Zurich (2006) and has been a professor at the Department of Structural Engineering at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) since 2016. His research focuses on structural safety, code calibration, and reliability assessment of materials and infrastructure, including timber, offshore, and transport structures.
Dr. Köhler has played a key role in international standardization efforts, actively contributing to several committees, including the European standardization bodies for structural Eurocodes. He is involved in professional organizations such as the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering (IABSE) and the International Federation for Structural Concrete (fib). Since 2023, he has served as the president of the Joint Committee on Structural Safety (JCSS), leading global efforts in the advancement of probabilistic safety assessment and structural design principles.

Vasant Matsagar

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi

Professor Dr Vasant Matsagar is currently serving as Professor, Dogra Chair, and Head of the Department in the Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. His current research interests include multi-hazard engineering; multi-hazard protection of structures from earthquake, blast, fire, and wind. Professor Matsagar is Founding Director and Fellow of the Council of Vibration Specialists (CVS), and incumbent Vice-President of the Indian Society of Earthquake Technology (ISET). He has received fellowships from Fulbright Commission, Humboldt Foundation, Erasmus, ASEM-DUO India, and he is also an elected fellow of the National Academy of Sciences (F-NASI), Indian National Academy for Engineering (F-NAE), Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (F-CDRI), Institution of Engineers (India) (F-IEI), and Indian Society of Earthquake Technology (F-ISET).

Manfred Braune

University of Cape Town (UCT)

Manfred currently holds the position of Director: Environmental Sustainability at the University of Cape Town (UCT), where he leads the strategy and implementation of environmental sustainability across all spheres of the university since early 2019. He also serves as a non-executive director of Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) in a voluntary role since August 2020. Manfred’s background is as a professional engineer, having worked at WSP Group for over 10 years as a consulting engineer, where he then started and led WSP’s green building business for 3 years and then worked for the GBCSA for 10 years directing all technical and training related matters.

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