Speakers

Helen is a Strategic Planner with over 30 years’ experience working across public and private sectors, both in the UK and internationally. Her specialism includes regeneration, masterplanning, inclusive healthy placemaking, development management, infrastructure planning, strategic policy development, community engagement and service improvement. She has led major development schemes such as Oak Wharf, a canal redevelopment site in Hackney, London and a Model City Plan for over 4 million people in Lagos, Nigeria, and more recently leading on a range of Garden Town developments and urban extensions for mixed use schemes comprising housing, schools and major infrastructure of more than 6,000 dwellings on behalf of Buckinghamshire Council.

She is the Founder and Chair of BAME Planners Network, promoting  diversity and inclusion in the planning profession. She is also an Advisory Board Member for Women in Planning and President of ICOGA Europe (Idia College alumni association). Helen has won several awards and was a judge in the RTPI London Region Awards 2021, RTPI Awards for Planning Excellence in 2020 and 2021.

Helen has been a member of the  RTPI General Assembly since 2019, RTPI Membership Panel (2016-2017), RTPI International Committee (2019), RTPI Membership and Ethics Committee (2020 to date) and was part of the International Strategy working group (2020/21).

Helen is RTPI President 2025. 

Dr Louise Edgington is a chartered educational psychologist with a specialism in climate psychology. She works to integrate climate psychology insights into education, sustainability initiatives, nature conservation, and climate adaptation efforts.

With an academic background in atmospheric physics, climate science, and energy studies, Louise believes that our psychological responses to the climate and ecological crises are both a barrier and a gateway to meaningful change.

She delivers workshops and training for schools and organisations, helping individuals to think more clearly about climate and ecological challenges, and to navigate and soothe difficult eco-related emotions.

Louise contributes to several climate-focused groups, including:

• The British Psychological Society’s Climate and Environment Action Coordinating Group
• Imperial Climate Cares expert working group
• Climate Majority Project's Climate Courage Campaign
• Climate Minds Coalition steering group

She is also an active member and facilitator for the Climate Psychology Alliance and has her own practice, ClimatEdPsych