Judging committee

Sunand Prasad is a principal at Perkins&Will. While designing across several sectors, he has been consistently engaged in healthcare and sustainability for four decades. At the core of his architectural practice, alongside interdisciplinary collaboration, Sunand holds a passionate belief that expertise and aesthetic judgement are most effective in creating truly successful environments when they are catalysed by the everyday experience of people. Sunand has been active in the wider built environment industry, particularly championing low-carbon, regenerative design, and until recently, as chair of the UK Green Building Council. He was President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) from 2007 to 2009, campaigning for action on climate change. He was founding member of the UK Government’s Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment; a London Mayor’s design advocate; a trustee of the Centre for Cities; and Chair of the trustees of Article 25, the humanitarian architecture charity. He currently chairs the Editorial Board of the Journal of Architecture and the External Advisory Board of TRUUD, a major research project on the fundamental links between health and urban development. He has written widely on architecture, sustainability and healthcare design, such as the book 'Changing Hospital Architecture'.

Ben Cave is a board chair and infrastructure specialist with over 20 years’ experience advising governments, multilateral institutions, financial organisations and the private sector on health, regulatory and environmental risk in major projects. He was elected, and then served as, President of the International Association for Impact Assessment. He is an Honorary Professor at the University of Liverpool and is completing a PhD across the faculties of spatial sciences and law at the University of Groningen.

Louise Ciotti is programme lead for architecture M-Arch at the University of the West of England, (UWE Bristol). An experienced academic and practitioner, she aims to equip students with the skills, attributes and knowledge to create sustainable, inclusive futures and the agency to make positive change in the natural and built environments. She is a fellow of the Schumacher Institute for Sustainable systems and a senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She is an advocate for an inclusive and diverse curriculum that reflects the individual backgrounds, experiences and interests of learners, working as co-leader of the UWE School of Architecture and Environment ‘Athena Swan’ team. She is part of a team delivering ‘live’ project based teaching, involving students in a series of meaningful, collaborative activities with practitioners and the wider community. Her research work has predominantly responded to prevailing industry needs in the advancement of sustainable design and construction. As in-house practice researcher, she delivered UK and European funded research projects into innovative materiality, embodied carbon profiling and climate change adaptation. She is completing a DPhil that brings together a series of publications on retrofit drivers and decision-making, the health impacts of retrofit, and the role of agency in implementing retrofit in low income communities. She combines research and teaching with professional architectural practice, with 20 years' practice experience in southwest UK. As a registered conservation architect with the AABC, and a PAS 2035 retrofit designer, she currently co-runs a specialist retrofit-focused practice with expertise in low carbon adaptive reuse, historic building repair and retrofit; and community resilience.

Lourdes is a public health professional who leads on creating healthy and sustainable places in East Sussex for East Sussex County Council. Lourdes has a background in international development, programme management, sustainability, political science, and sociology which includes a Masters in African Studies from Oxford University. In England, she co-chairs both the national health in all policies network and the southeast regional healthy places (built and natural environment) network. Lourdes and her team work to embed ‘Health in All Policies’ and lead on ‘Creating Healthy Places’ from a public health perspective. Using a ‘whole systems approach’, Lourdes works to influence decisions made in sectors other than ‘health’ that can positively or negatively affect the wider determinants of health and health inequalities. This includes a specialist focus on ‘planning for health/designing in health’ and planetary health. Lourdes provides expertise on health impact assessments and national strategic infrastructure projects.

Beatrice is an industrial designer and ergonomist with particular expertise in designing systems and products aligned to end user requirements. Her early career was in design, ergonomic research and teaching at UMIST and Liverpool University. Her public-sector life has always involved regeneration and economic development schemes at a local and regional level – first as chair of the Rope Walks Partnership in Liverpool, then as chair of Renew NW. Beatrice was a non-executive director of Liverpool Health Authority, then chair of South Liverpool Primary Care Trust. Beatrice is a CQC special advisor specialising in governance and leadership. She is a trustee of the Design Council and an Hon.FRIBA. Her past roles have included chair of a housing association, trustee of Tate Liverpool, and chair of the Architects Registration Board.

Jeremy Myerson has been academic, author and activist in design for more than 40 years. He co-founded the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design in 1999, and was its director until 2015. Last year, he received emeritus professor status at the RCA, and he continues to direct his own venture, the WORKTECH Academy, which provides a forum for academics and practitioners to share new ideas on the future of work and workplace. He is the author of more than 20 books on a wide range of subjects in art, design and architecture, and he has curated many national design exhibitions. He has been at the helm of the Healthy City Design Programme Committee since the Congress’ inception in 2017.

Helen Pineo is an urban planner, Research Associate Professor in the Department of Urban Design and Planning at the University of Washington and Honorary Associate Professor at University College London. Her research focuses on how development, regeneration and urban policy can support health and sustainability. She contributes to the evidence base about why and how to do healthy urbanism by using transdisciplinary approaches and amplifying the needs of under-represented communities and the planet.

Natalia is an architect and urbanist with over 20 years of experience, specialising in cities at the LSE. Her career path has been shaped by a wealth of experience in architectural design and masterplanning. She has worked in over 25 countries, including the Middle East, the UK, and several across Latin America, collaborating with both public- and private-sector clients to deliver transformative projects for cities, people and communities. These experiences have provided her with a deep understanding of the complexities of urbanisation across diverse cultural, social and economic contexts on a global scale. She adopts a cross-disciplinary approach in her projects, integrating design, environmental sustainability, and social ecosystems. Her expertise encompasses advisory roles, stakeholder engagement, strategic planning, and the development of placemaking and social impact strategies that align with the Sustainable Development Goals. She thrives on fostering meaningful collaboration, whether mentoring multicultural teams, co-creating solutions with communities, or guiding clients toward a shared vision for a regenerative urban future.

Cathy is a recognised practitioner in urban design and an associate of the RTPI. She gained a master’s in urban design at Newcastle University. Cathy’s role at Ryder involves research, masterplanning, public realm, site and contextual analysis, stakeholder engagement and planning. She also leads historic research, heritage statements and impact assessments, working closely with conservation officers, Historic England and other consultees. Cathy is a Building with Nature approved assessor and Healthy Streets Foundation practitioner, and is passionate about creating healthy, sustainable places which enhance wellbeing. She contributes to Ryder’s research on placemaking for health and wellbeing, including presenting at the SALUS Healthy City Design Congress.

Heather Macey is a Principal and Trustee at Makower Architects, where she leads the practice’s strategic focus on health, housing and regeneration. With over 20 years’ experience in urban masterplanning, supported housing and mixed-use development, her work explores how the built environment can actively contribute to population health and social equity. She is currently leading the River Roding Health Corridor, a cross-sector initiative integrating public realm, preventative healthcare and community infrastructure in partnership with NHS North East London, Be First, Care City, Arup and Connected Places Catapult. Heather is also Trustee and Co-Lead of Homestead, an innovative therapeutic supported-housing model for individuals with psychosis, combining design, creative practice and place-based care. She regularly contributes to policy and design discourse on preventative urban health, social justice and systemic change.

Rob is an architect and sustainability lead at Stride Treglown. Rob is interested in pro-activism – how we collaboratively instigate action on climate, biodiversity and health. He was the winner of the RIBA competition ‘Tomorrow's Garden City' and was behind 'Bath Wellbeing City', an initiative to reposition Bath as the UK's leading centre for wellbeing. He also co-produced a design guide, 'Health and wellbeing designed-in', in partnership with Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health NHS Trust.

Kerry Harding is a highly experienced project director specialising in strategic healthcare planning and complex estates programmes. With a long career across the NHS, Kerry brings deep expertise in system‑wide transformation, Green Book business cases, and the delivery of sustainable, future‑focused health infrastructure. At Mott MacDonald, Kerry leads major programmes for community trusts, ICBs and primary care networks. This work spans strategic estates reviews, community diagnostic centres, new models of care, and integrated health hub developments. Kerry also champions the role of neighbourhood health delivery plans, practical, place‑based frameworks that turn strategy into action and embed health into everyday life.

As Chief executive officer, Victoria is responsible for the financial performance of the business and leading the ongoing improvement and integration of Archus services to ensure consistency, innovation, sustainability and quality across its growing number of UK, Irish and International offices. She also supports projects within Archus's programme and project management service, which includes working across all stages of the project lifecycle to advise clients on how projects should progress to deliver successful outcomes – all while keeping the environment fun and interactive so that everyone has a chance to have their voice heard.

Mark is an experienced practitioner and researcher with 25 years’ experience. He works across the fields of public health, urbanism, planning, and architecture. Mark founded Urban Habitats in 2018, putting research into action in local places. Alongside practice work, he is a healthy places specialist at South Cambridgeshire District Council. He is a member of the Centre for Public Health and Wellbeing at UWE Bristol, where he completed his doctoral research, Healthy Streetlife. He is a board member at Green Squirrel, a social enterprise with a vision for caring communities that runs Railway Gardens, a community resilience hub. Happiest while on a bicycle, Mark is an optimistic allotmenteer and lives in Cardiff.

Ernst is based in MCAU’s Manchester office supporting and leading its design excellence and growth strategy. He brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the team following a career spanning 20+ years working in some of the North West’s most respected and innovative practices, including Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, Mecanoo Architecten and SimpsonHaugh, where he was instrumental in delivering a wide spectrum of award-winning schemes. Ernst has led major town centre transformation projects for Stretford, Chorlton and Wythenshawe, coupled with innovative masterplans such as Trafford Civic Quarter, Lumina Village, and the recent Strangeways and forthcoming Stockport East SRFs. Notable civic projects include the thriving HOME Arts Centre, Antwerp Concert Hall and the University of Manchester’s ground-breaking Engineering Campus. Ernst is known for industry-setting residential schemes, including Kampus, Circle Square and Hulme Leaf Street, specialising in affordable and Passivhaus design seen at Muse’s Salford Oldfield Basin and completing his own Passivhaus home in 2022.

Esme is strategy director at BVN. She specialises in the intersection of human behaviour and the built environment. With a career spanning design, research, communications, and business intelligence, she translates data into actionable insights that shape the future of spaces and places. Esme has worked across diverse sectors, exploring how strategic briefing influences outcomes at every scale – from individual wellbeing to system-wide efficiency. Her expertise lies in bridging gaps between disciplines, ensuring environments are not just functional but deeply responsive to human needs. She is passionate about understanding how people interact with space and how this, in turn, impacts experience. A recognised commentator on the built environment, Esme has contributed to global conversations and publications on design and strategy, the future of work, sustainability and regeneration, and digital transformation. Committed to breaking down industry silos, Esme integrates research, data, and strategy with design, to create holistic and future-focused environments. Her work ensures that the built environment evolves in a way that enhances both human experience and organisational outcomes.

Mark is the publisher of Workplace Insight, IN magazine, Works magazine and is the European Director of Work&Place journal. He has worked in the office design and management sector for over thirty years as a journalist, marketing professional, editor and consultant.

Chris is a senior research fellow and reader in inclusive design at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design (HHCD), based in the Royal College of Art (RCA), where he leads the Age and Diversity research space, and the Design Age Institute’s Research Unit. Chris is a principal researcher/designer on a range of projects and leads on all ‘age and diversity’ projects for a host of major global private, public and third-sector companies. His research interests explore inclusive design, design ethnography, leadership, creativity and the role of empathy within people-centred design. He is an award-winning people-centred designer, researcher and writer having worked in the field of inclusive design for over two decades on a broad range of projects, which have been successfully commercialised, exhibited and disseminated internationally, including work featuring in the permanent collection of the Design Museum. Beyond ongoing engagement across departments within the RCA, Chris has extensive roles as committee member, reviewer, visiting lecturer and examiner at numerous UK and international academic institutions, professional and government bodies. He frequently delivers keynotes in international settings, and delivers executive education and workshops within academia, industry, and government settings.

Professor Andy Miah, PhD is chair of science communication and future media at the University of Salford, where he is also the academic champion for the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. Professor Miah also provides research leadership for the Innovate UK funded MediaCity Immersive Technologies Innovation Hub. His research investigates the ethical, legal, social and cultural questions concerning technological change and his publications draw on ideas from science, technology, art, and media culture. Author of ten books and more than 200 academic articles, Professor Miah has been at the forefront of debates about how humanity is moving beyond conventional evolutionary processes and towards evolution by technology. His research on the Olympic Games has involved advising cities for over 25 years on their regeneration goals and how to integrate healthy living into mega-events. He holds advisory roles for the UK Government’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport, the World Technology Games, the Global Esports Federation, and the British Esports Federation. His recent works have focused on artificial intelligence, esports, digital health, and the metaverse. He regularly interviews for a range of major media companies and has appeared in more than 300 outlets, including Audible, Fortune, Vogue, BBC, and The Conversation.

Dr Garett Thomas Sansom, DrPH, MPH is director of the Together for a Better Tomorrow Research Program and assistant professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Texas A&M University School of Public Health. His work focuses on environmental health, community resilience, environmental justice, and the ways neighbourhoods, infrastructure, and exposure burdens shape health outcomes. He also serves as a faculty member in the Texas A&M Interdisciplinary Program in Toxicology. Dr Sansom’s research emphasises community-engaged approaches to addressing environmental contamination, disaster recovery, water quality, greenspace, and healthy neighbourhood development, particularly in historically overburdened communities. He has led and collaborated on projects supported by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, and Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas. His scholarship includes more than 40 peer-reviewed publications spanning environmental exposure assessment, community health, resilience, and sustainable cities. His work is grounded in building practical, community-informed strategies that connect research, planning, and policy to improve environmental conditions and support healthier, more resilient cities.