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We are delighted to announce that the 12th BIEE Future of Energy Lecture will be given by
Professor Dame Julia King, Baroness Brown of Cambridge
Climate Change – how well adapted is the UK?
at The Royal Society on Thursday 4 June 2026
Professor Dame Julia King, Baroness Brown of Cambridge DBE FREng FRS FMedSci is an engineer and Crossbench Member of the House of Lords.
Baroness Brown has extensive experience in the areas of science, technology, education, innovation, and climate change mitigation and adaptation – including 12 years as vice-chair of the Climate Change Committee, where she is now chair of its Adaptation Committee.
She holds a first class degree in Natural Sciences and a PhD in Fracture Mechanics from the University of Cambridge and is a fellow of three National Academies.
Previous leadership roles include a decade spent as the Vice-Chancellor of Aston University, serving as Principal of the Engineering Faculty at Imperial College London, and a series of senior business and engineering posts at Rolls-Royce plc.
Baroness Brown is an expert in the field of low carbon business and was appointed by the UK government to lead the King Review (2007) examining the vehicle and fuel technologies that could help to decarbonise road transport over the next 25 years.
She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to materials engineering in 1999 and promoted to Dame Commander (DBE) for services to technology and higher education in 2012. She was appointed as a Crossbench peer to the House of Lords in 2015, where she Chaired the Science and Technology Select Committee (2022-2025) and now sits on the Intelligence and Security Committee.
Registration
Please register via the button links in the banner at the top of this page.
If you are a BIEE Member please sign into your account first to access complimentary registration.
| BIEE Members (individual and corporate) | Free |
| Non-Members | £20* |
* the ticket price is refundable against the BIEE Membership cost, if you decide to join the BIEE within the next 3 months.
BIEE membership subscriptions start from £10 – you can sign up here and access all member benefits today.
The Future of Energy Lecture Series
The Future of Energy Lecture Series, launched by BIEE in 2014 to mark its 30th anniversary, has become an essential platform for the discussion of key energy challenges. Every year, a leading figure from industry, government, or academia shares their expertise on critical topics shaping the future of energy.
Past Speakers
- 2025 Fintan Slye, CEO, National Energy System Operator (NESO) – ‘Navigating the Future: Understanding the role of the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and addressing contemporary energy challenges’
- 2024 Lord Adair Turner – ‘Achieving a net zero economy: technological possibilities and economic challenges’
- 2023 Juliet Davenport OBE – ‘A view from a Renewables Pioneer’
- 2021/22 Greg Jackson, Founder & Chief Executive, Octopus Energy – ‘Heating goes electric: Why heat pumps will become mainstream soon’
- 2019 Sinead Lynch, UK Country Chair, Shell – ‘The UK’s Energy Future: a call for greater urgency’
- 2018 Steve Holliday, Former CEO, National Grid – ‘We Need a Plan… or do we ?’
- 2017 The Rt Hon Greg Clark MP, Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy – ‘UK Energy Policy’
- 2016 Iain Conn, CEO, Centrica – ‘The Customer and the Changing Energy Landscape’
- 2015 Professor Dieter Helm, University of Oxford – ‘Energy Policy after the Election’
- 2014 Ian Marchant, Former CEO, SSE – ‘Keeping the Lights on’
Venue
The lecture will be held in the Dining Room on the lower ground floor of The Royal Society. Registration will start outside the meeting room at 17:00 and tea/coffee will be available on arrival. The lecture including Q&A will run for an hour from 17:30 and will be followed by a networking drinks reception.
For directions to the Royal Society please click here
This event is not organized or endorsed by the Royal Society.
The Royal Society
6-9 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AG
Post your comments and questions for the speakers here