Global Futures Forum 2018: Critical Horizons

Daniela joined LS:N Global in 2013, and she now oversees the entire content platform. Leading a team of writers and creative researchers as well as a network of cultural navigators, Daniela ensures that LS:N Global stays ahead of the foresight curve, from our daily Need To Know coverage to our sector-specific macro trends and Futures reports.

She is also The Future Laboratory's in-house food and drink expert, and has presented for clients including Arla, Mercedes-Benz and Pernod Ricard.

Christopher Sanderson is co-founder of The Future Laboratory, where he is responsible for delivering the company’s extensive global roster of conferences, media events and LS:N Global Trend Briefings, which he co-presents with the team in London, New York, Sydney, Melbourne, Stockholm and Helsinki. Clients who have booked one of his inspirational keynotes include Gucci Group, the European Travel Commission, Retail Week, Selfridges, M&S, Chanel, Harrods, Aldo and H&M.

Meredith Smith is a Strategy Director at The Future Laboratory, working with clients across retail, beauty, FMCG, conviviality and hospitality to make insights actionable, working with brands like VF Corp, Chanel, P&G, Pernod Ricard, L’Oreal and Hilton Worldwide’s Luxury Division. Meredith is obsessed with consumer behaviour, from mundane acts to guilty pleasures. Her specialist areas are also her passions – strategic foresight and innovation. 

Rhiannon joined LS:N Global in 2016 and is responsible for co-running the fast-paced Briefing and Insight news sections. She also contributes across the website as a writer and researcher. Rhiannon has experience writing online for design magazines Disegno and Wallpaper*, lifestyle magazine Jocks & Nerds and art magazine Aesthetica. After completing a Bachelor of Arts in History of Art and Italian at Leeds University, her interest in writing prompted her to pursue a Master’s degree in Magazine Journalism at City University.

Jessica joined The Future Laboratory in 2014 after completing a Masters degree in Trend Forecasting at the Polimoda Institute of Design and Marketing in Florence. After working at ASOS and then as a freelancer at The Future Laboratory, she became a permanent member of the team, working on client projects including Nikon, Royal Salute and QIC. 

Rachael joined LS:N Global in 2014 and is responsible for running the fast-paced Seed and Insight news sections. She is also a primary contact for the designers and brands we feature. Rachael has studio experience working for high-end fashion labels, such as Jonathan Saunders and Margaret Howell. Her avid interest in visual culture beyond the realms of fashion led her to study trend forecasting at Central Saint Martins.

Swirl Founder Andy Walton is a Community Mental Health Nurse, based in North East England. With a background in marketing and public relations, Andy changed career to work in mental health in 2012. Starting his nursing career in Early Intervention in Psychosis Services, he now works for the leading military veteran charity Combat Stress. Andy independently launched Swirl in April 2018. A project designed to smash stigma around mental health and offer a striking and uncomplicated alternative to current self-help resources. The guide has since featured in The Guardian and has been purchased across the world.   

Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff is an award-winning writer, editor and columnist, who focuses on issues surrounding race, feminism, social justice and media. She is the deputy editor of gal-dem, a magazine written and produced exclusively by women of colour and non-binary people of colour aiming to diversify the journalism landscape, and contributes to publications including the Guardian, iPaper and Dazed.

Rachael Donalds is the founder and CEO of Biosay, an app that analyses your biometric data to determine how your physical surroundings impact your health and emotional wellbeing. Rachael‘s areas of expertise are in wellness, healthtech, and has published articles ranging from the use of stem cells in the treatment of anxiety and depression, to proposing AI as a new “Digital” Determinant of Health. Rachael has an MS from T.H. Chan Harvard School of Public Health, and an MPA from Brown University. She is currently completing her PhD in Counseling Psychology and clinical training at McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School.

Daniel is the CEO of Satalia, a UK-based company that provides Artificial Intelligence (AI) and also the Director of UCL’s Business Analytics MSc, applying AI to solve business and social problems. Daniel is a popular public speaker specialising in the topics of Philosophy, Technology, Innovation and Organisational Design. He is a serial speaker for Google and TEDx, and is a faculty member of Singularity University. Daniel has a Masters and Doctorate in AI from UCL, lectures in Computer Science and Business, and is passionate about how technology can be used to govern organisations and bring positive social impact.

Emma Sexton is a the founder of MYWW™ a design company specialising in demystifying and delivering in-house design. Co-Founder of Flock Global, a network for early stage entrepreneurs built on an ethos of collaboration and a co-presenter on talkRADIO for The Badass Women’s Hour. Over the past six years Emma has been applying a feminist approach to the creation and operation of both of her businesses to provide evidence and proof that there is nothing stopping us all playing a part in redesigning 'business as usual'.

Usman is a founding partner of Umbrellium, which designs and builds urban technologies that support citizen empowerment and high-impact engagement in cities, and CEO of  Thingful.net. Trained as an architect, he has created responsive environments, interactive installations, digital interface devices and mass-participation initiatives throughout the world. His skills include the design and engineering of both physical spaces and the software and systems that bring them to life. He received the 2008 Design of the Year Award (interactive) from the Design Museum, UK, a 2009 World Technology Award (art), the Japan Media Arts Festival Excellence prize and the Asia Digital Art Award Grand Prize.

Dr Barbara Mariposa is a medical doctor with a background in psychiatry and public health. She now works as an event leader, organisational consultant and author in the fields of mindfulness, emotion mastery, leadership, corporate performance and mental wellbeing. 

Arnold is one of Europe’s leading specialists in Chinese digital marketing. He is the founder and CEO of Qumin, the UK’s largest Chinese digital marketing agency, which aims to bridge the gap between China and the UK and give British companies access to an audience of billions. The official line is that ‘Qumin delivers creative marketing campaigns based on Chinese consumer behaviour’. But over a steamed bun in Camden Town, he’ll tell you that his bigger purpose in life is to open the world to China. And his belief is that only digital can make that happen quickly. You’ll find him on WeChat, Instagram and 9gag.

Charlotte is a British-Sri Lankan arts and culture journalist who has written for the Financial Times, The Guardian, Wallpaper*, The British Journal of Photography, Vice, Frieze and Elle. She is the author of Girl on Girl: Art and Photography in the Age of the Female Gaze (Laurence King, UK, April 2017), and a contributing author of Virtual Normality: The Female Gaze in the Age of the Internet. She has lectured on the female gaze at universities across the UK and at the Fotokunstskole, Oslo.

In her role at global design and strategy consultancy Frog Design, Sesh works alongside a multi-disciplinary team of designers, innovators and technologists to build innovative products, services and experiences grounded in human needs. She has led and delivered customer experience programmes for clients across multiple industries in the US, Europe and India. Sesh is passionate about doing empathetic, human-centred, multidisciplinary work, and uses her background as an engineer, entrepreneur and service designer to seamlessly blend strategy, design and technology to create lasting business and social impact.