Hartley News Online Your alumni and supporter magazine
Recent news
Check here in each edition of Hartley News Online for the latest news from the University and your alumni and supporter community…
In light of the events unfolding in Ukraine, the University Executive Board has decided to suspend until further notice both of the University’s formal partnerships with two Russian institutions.
The University’s immediate focus has been on the practical and pastoral support we can provide to our students and staff, particularly those from Ukraine and from Russia.
We are proud to be an international community and know that many of our alumni and supporters will be directly impacted by this situation. Our thoughts go out to everyone in our community who has been affected.
We will continue closely to monitor this fast-moving situation, and the needs of our community.
We are thrilled to announce that Southampton has made it through to the final four shortlisted locations in the bid to become UK City of Culture 2025.
Claire Whitaker OBE, Bid Director, UK City of Culture 2025, said “We owe a huge debt of gratitude to so many people for the achievement of winning a place on this shortlist. Three years of sustained work and thousands of people supporting us – not just in the communities of Southampton but across the wider Solent region. The bid has brought the city together, embracing the world of creators, children and young people, artists, academics, businesses and civic leaders. This is a moment of celebration for all of us.”
We were delighted to see several University alumni and friends recognised in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours in January.
- Dr Alexander Geoffrey Lambert, alumnus and Deputy Director of Covid Infection Survey Operations at the Office for National Statistics was awarded an OBE for services to Statistics and Public Health.
- Mr Aaron David Phipps, alumnus and Paralympic gold medallist was awarded an MBE for services to Wheelchair Rugby
- Mrs Eliza Jane Ecclestone, alumna, was awarded a BEM for services to the community in Sevenoaks, Kent during the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Sir David Winton Harding, friend of the University, was awarded a knighthood for services to Philanthropy
- Mr Richard Middleton, former Chief Operating Officer of the University, was awarded an OBE for services to the Commonwealth and Higher Education.
From the 14th to the 19th March the University celebrated India Week, a week dedicated to the furtherance of Southampton-India collaboration and our valuable partnerships in the region. Two reunion events were held for Indian alumni, one in Southampton and one in Mumbai, as well as a virtual roundtable event, film screenings, lectures and social events.
Alumnus Craig Lawton (BA Music, 2007) and his Charity Symphony Orchestra were invited to play at the Royal Albert Hall alongside rock band Don Broco for the Teenage Cancer Trust concert on 21st March this year.
The orchestra joined Craig’s classmate and Don Broco bassist Tom Doyle (also BA Music, 2007) and the rest of the band on stage for their first ever outing with the backing of a full orchestra.
While more used to playing Mahler and Mozart, Craig and the orchestra were excited for this opportunity to play at an iconic concert series, started by The Who over two decades ago, for such a worthy cause.
The Charity Symphony Orchestra is a leading fundraising ensemble based on the South Coast of England and features several other University alumni. All players and management team members of the orchestra donate their time and skills to raise money for worthy causes.
Earlier this year, the University was very pleased to receive a generous legacy gift from Lord Selborne, former Chancellor of the University from 1996-2006. This gift will support Enterprise activity at Southampton. Read about Lord Selborne’s life and involvement with the University.
As part of a major project with the National Museum of the Royal Navy, the University’s engineering consultancy was recently involved in materials testing to help preserve Admiral Nelson’s flagship, the HMS Victory, for another 50 years. You can watch a video explaining the work below.
Alumna and Professor of Sustainable Business, Denise Baden, is running a series of competitions aimed at raising awareness of sustainable lifestyles and eco-friendly modes of living. Denise’s research shows that fictional role models can have a huge impact on the behaviours of audiences, and the latest Green Stories competition, run in association with BAFTA, asks budding videographers to produce 5 minute films addressing the issue of excessive consumption in fictional narratives. The deadline for entries is the 31st May 2022. You can find out more information about all the Green Stories competitions here.
And from our last edition…
Some incredible recent news: Southampton has once again risen in the prestigious QS World University Rankings, now placed 77th globally! Thanks to everyone who’s helped us continue climbing the table – including of course our amazing alumni and supporter community, achieving remarkable things out in the world.
Congratulations to Southampton alumnus Giles Scott (BSc Geography with Geology, 2008), who – shortly before time of publication – defended his Olympic title by winning gold in the Finn class for men’s sailing. We’ve got our fingers crossed for further alumni success!
On a related note, catch up on one of our recent special events below – ‘Sailing on the Edge’ – which features four alumni from the world of sport and science, including broadcaster John Inverdale.
The summer edition of Re:action, our research and enterprise magazine, celebrates EU-funded research taking place at the University. We put the spotlight on fascinating and world-leading work on carbon capture and storage, nurses’ wellbeing, underwater pollution, materials discovery, the rapid diagnosis of COVID-19, quantum communications – and more!
Check out the University’s 360 Degrees podcast, with recent episodes interviewing a plethora of alumni – including Jon Sopel. Available to listen on Spotify and all main platforms.
To mark World Environment Day in June, alumnus Owen Gaffney (BEng Aeronautics, 1991) co-authored Breaking Boundaries – a new book revealing the full scale of our planetary emergency, which accompanies a David Attenborough-narrated Netflix documentary.
In April, HRH Prince Philip sadly died. The Duke of Edinburgh was an honorary alumnus of Southampton, seen below accepting his degree in 1967. Across the University, we continue to express our sorrow at his passing.
Meet Ali Safari (BEng Mechanical Engineering, 2016), the entrepreneurial alumnus who’s using artificial intelligence to fight climate change.
Alumnus Augustine Asamoah (MSc Public Health, 2014) – who was a Commonwealth Scholar at the University – has been profiled by the Commonwealth Scholarships Commission on his incredible healthcare work in Ghana.
We’d like to extend our congratulations to alumnus and donor Grenville Cross (LLB Law, 1973), who has been awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star – one of Hong Kong’s highest honours. Grenville has had an illustrious career, most notably as the region’s Director of Public Prosecutions after its handover in 1997. Check out when Hartley News Online interviewed Grenville.
