Edinburgh Impact

Our people

Meet the individuals making a difference.

Introducing the University’s first Gaelic writer in residence

Image of Martin MacIntyre
Author, poet and storyteller Martin MacIntyre will take up the new role for the next two years.

Meet the alumni making waves in the climate crisis

Image of Alumni, Kirsty Duncan and Forget Shareka
Edinburgh is celebrating some of its former students at the forefront of the global climate response.

Supercomputing’s super potential

Professor Mark Parsons sits at a table holding a cup and looking to camera.
Having been at the leading edge of supercomputing, and its extraordinary growth over the past 30 years, Professor Mark Parsons believes we’re just at the cusp of exploiting its mind-blowing potential.

The connection creator

Professor Chris Speed
From the helm of the University's Edinburgh Futures Institute, Professor Chris Speed is drawing on his creative credentials and passion for connection to unite the brightest and best in designing data-driven solutions to the biggest, most complex and interconnected challenges facing the world today.

Towards a technomoral future

Professor Shannon Vallor pictured on the roof terrace of the Univerity's Bayes Centre
Are ethics and technology distinctly disconnected or inextricably linked? With Professor Shannon Vallor at the helm of the University’s new Centre for Technomoral Futures, these two traditionally separate areas of research are uniting to ensure a society increasingly driven by artificial intelligence and data can flourish.

Bigger than Bond

Portrait of Kim Sherwood
The world of OO7 is expanding thanks to Kim Sherwood, lecturer in creative writing and one of the first female authors in the official series of James Bond novels. With the publication of 'Double or Nothing' she talks updating spies and surprising family ties.

A low-cost lifesaver

Portrait of Arfang Faye in a white lab coat
Childbirth is never risk-free, particularly in poorer or disadvantaged countries where restricted access to modern equipment can have a devastating impact. One graduate’s ingenuity is attempting to redress that balance.

Co-creating the curriculum

A portrait of Cathy Bovill
Involving students in creating their own curriculum could be the future of higher education suggests Professor Catherine Bovill.