SY Women in Sustainability continues to wow!
A fantastic turn out for our second South Yorkshire Women in Sustainability event. From students to seasoned professionals, to those new to the sustainability scene, we were delighted by another brilliant turnout.
It's incredibly satisfying to see the passion and momentum already (at only our second ever event)! It was great to see such an eclectic mix of sustainability professionals and students, covering everything from biodiversity to funding, from design to construction.
Here’s what you missed
Lorna Anguilano
Director of the Experimental Techniques Centre at Brunel University London. In 2021, she co‑founded Phyona Ltd, where she serves as Chief Technical Officer and Director.
Lorna studied mineralogy at the University of Milan, followed by a PhD in Archaeometallurgy from University College London.
Since 2015, Lorna’s been looking into phytomining as a way to restore the environmental and economic value of retired mines, focusing on recovering leftover metals and protecting historic landscapes. Her work led to the creation of Phyona, a company that uses local, non-GMO plants to pull metals out of soil and water, with the harvested plants processed on-site to release valuable nanoparticles.
The process doesn’t stop there - the remaining plant material has lots of potential to decarbonise cross-sector systems. The goal is to generate hyper‑local supply chains linking soil regeneration, improved biodiversity, agriculture, and construction, providing models of circular economy and industrial resilience with low or even negative carbon footprints.
Lorna presented the concept, the process and its application in Sheffield and Barnsley to create the first hyper-local supply chain from contamination to wellbeing.
Chandana Kola
Civil Engineer and Lecturer in Built Environment with 7+ years of academic and industry experience in India and the UK.
Recognized for excellence in teaching and project guidance with awards such as Best Teacher Award 2017 and Excellence in Project Management 2019.
Chandana's passion is preparing students for the world of construction with a core focus on sustainability, through hands-on practical approaches combined with in-depth research. She talked to us about how a grounding in a range of practical skills, access to real-world learning opportunities, and industry support are helping prepare our next generation of construction specialists, including architects, designers and engineers, and skilled trades such as electricians, joiners and bricklayers.
Chandana also discussed how we might better support women and girls into choosing vocational courses as the need for green skills grows amid continued underrepresentation in core industries. We’re very fortunate that she brought some of her brilliant students with her, including winners of awards in sustainability and those establishing a career path thanks to work placements in the sector.
A huge thanks for the brilliant feedback we’ve already received. We’re always looking to spread the word about this growing network: if you’d like to collaborate with us, or are interested in presenting at a future breakfast networking event, do get in touch.
Our next quarterly breakfast networking will be in September - we’ll update you in the newsletter when we have a fixed date and venue. As SYWiS is relatively new - we’re still learning! We realised at the last two events that there are lots more conversations to be had with our cross-sector peers, so there’ll be some format tweaks for our next event in September - including more time after the speakers for you to enjoy the breakfast buffet and network.
We'll share exciting updates in our monthly newsletter, do drop us a line if you'd like to hear more or share your news with our growing community!
SYWiS has been made possible by the continued support of South Yorkshire Retrofit Skills Task Force, which is funded by South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority and Aviva, and empowered by SY Ecofit CIC