Hi everyone – and welcome to the future!

It’s great to see so many of you and I hope you all enjoy an inspiring and enlightening afternoon.
Here at Surrey, we are proud of our past and excited about the future.

We want to deliver impactful research – research which transforms lives and changes society, locally and internationally.

Today’s lightning talks and demonstrations from some of our leading academics offer a sneak peek at how we are doing this.

Please take a programme and read more about how our three Faculties are reimagining the future.
The future does spark curiosity, excitement and – sometimes – a tinge of apprehension. But here at Surrey, we believe the best way to predict the future is to create it.

This entrepreneurial spirit was captured so well by the character of Doc Emmett Brown in the ‘Back to the Future’ films – as you know, the inventor who transformed a DeLorean into a time machine.

Unfortunately, our DeLorean here doesn’t have that feature, but it does make for a brilliant photo!
Doc’s genius triumphed despite his isolation.

Our approach is rather different.

The global challenges we face today require more than individual brilliance.

They call for collaboration, shared resources, and collective wisdom. At Surrey, we firmly believe that we can achieve more when we work together.

This ethos is at the heart of all our endeavours, not only across our three Faculties, but in our recently established pan-University institutes in people-centred AI and sustainability and through our world-leading researchers in the 5G/6G Innovation Centre.

To drive forward our vision, we launched our global philanthropic campaign, The Future Says Surrey early last year.

Ambitious in scope, it aimed to raise £60 million to enable us to invest further in our strong research capabilities and student experience.

A year down the road, I am proud to say that despite the challenges we all face, we are well on track to reaching this target.

This is in no small way thanks to the support and generosity of our alumni, friends and partners.

I hope you will embrace the opportunities available on campus today and enjoy what our amazing colleagues have to offer.

Last year’s Surrey Showcase was recently shortlisted for two national (HEIST) awards in the categories of Best Event and Best Community Initiative.

I’m confident that today’s event is even better, and please enjoy today.

Thank you.