(Bio and photo courtesy of ARUP.com.)

I am an Associate Lighting Designer and Lighting’s Arts and Culture Business leader in the UK. My specialism is in the design of daylight and electric lighting systems in museums and gallery spaces.

Projects that I have worked on include the London Aquatic Centre for the 2012 Olympics, the Investcorp Building, St Antony’s College at the University of Oxford, the Broad Museum in Los Angeles, and the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

The Broad Museum won Daylight Project of the Year at the Lighting Design Awards (2016) and was crowned the Supreme Winner at the Surface Design Awards (2017). The Investcorp won the Education and Healthcare project of the year at LUX Awards (2015).

I am most proud of the system I developed for the Gagosian Gallery at Grosvenor Hill - to reproduce the exterior lighting conditions, simulating a naturally daylit space in the interior. The client had a strong desire for daylight to feature in the space, however, due to site constraints, it was not possible to integrate skylights into the galleries. I developed an electric lighting solution which is used to present art work under realistic real-time conditions. Seeing my original concept work so well in practice, and to surpass the client’s expectations, was one of the most fulfilling moments of my career.

My work extends to fashion where she designed the lighting for Céline runways shows for Spring/Summer 2017, Fall/Winter 2017 and Spring/Summer 2018 for Paris Fashion Week.

In June 2017 I was named as one of the Top 50 Women in Engineering Under 35 by the Telegraph and in May 2018 one of the 40 Under 40 Young Lighting Designers globally. More recently, I was selected by the Financial Times and Inclusive Boards as one of the 100 Most Influential Women Leaders in Engineering UK and Europe 2019. I am one of the protagonist of ‘This Is Engineering’ campaign which seeks to rebrand engineering for people aged 13-18.

Markus Bauman is focused on being a solution-oriented partner to the business and a strategic leader in the scale up to becoming a world-class consequential business. He has taken dozens of European tech + life science companies public in the United States, as well as led IPOs on every major European stock exchange.

Markus brings significant expertise in IPO and public company preparedness, financings, and mergers and acquisitions, as well as experience setting up and scaling Legal + Compliance functions and teams in VC/PE-backed hypergrowth startups and scale-ups, with over 20 years of experience working with European innovative companies.

He participates in the UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce, with a focus on Workstream 3: Creating the best environment for the UK to produce high growth, consequential companies.

Christy joined the Foundation in 1997. She serves as a senior advisor to the UIF president and as treasurer to the UIF board of directors. She oversees UIF’s business development, strategy, and financial operations—including the ongoing development of, and compliance with, policies and procedures. Christy leads a team responsible for gift and real estate acceptance and administration, accounting and finance, advancement services, information technology, information governance, user support, records, and human resources. Prior to joining the Foundation, Christy was employed in the banking industry. She is both a registered Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA). Christy is a financial accounting graduate of Illinois State University and received her MBA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Dalton is a 1977 University of Illinois graduate with a BS in Finance. He has worked in a variety of investment banking roles including client management, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged finance, and restructuring advisory for firms such as Harris Bank, Bankers Trust Company, and Deutsche Bank. Dalton’s career has involved positions in Chicago, New York, and London; and project work in nearly every major and emerging economy. In 2003, Dalton formed Industry Corporate Finance Ltd, a London-based mergers and acquisitions firm providing advisory services worldwide to industrial sector and private equity clients.

Geert Glas is a senior IP counsel at the global law firm Allen & Overy LLP and a member of the Belgian (Brussels) bar.

Specialising in intellectual property (IP) law, Geert conducts litigation, advises on non-litigious matters and assists in negotiating and drafting agreements and transactions in a broad range of sectors, including technology, media, telecom and life sciences. He has more than 30 years of experience in IP litigation before the European, Benelux and Belgian courts, including some landmark cases. 

From 2009 until 2017, Geert was the chairman of the Benelux Council for Intellectual Property (BCIP), which advises the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP) on all aspects of IP legislation. He is a former chairman of the Benelux Association for Trademark and Design Law (BMM) and a former member of the Board of Directors of the International Trademark Association (INTA). He is a member of INTA's Europe Global Advisory Council. In addition, Geert has advised the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) on IP issues related to the Internet, and is also an accredited WIPO and ICC arbitrator. 

Geert is a thought leader on IP issues and his views are often sought by Reuters, Bloomberg, the FT and the WSJ. 

Usama is a triple-graduate from Illinois, attending University Primary School, University High School, and graduating with an Industrial Design degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He has spent his career creating, and leading teams that create, software used by hundreds of millions of people every day. Usama has been a member of the UIF UK board since 2019.

Chris is a seasoned executive with expertise in technology, media, and sports. He currently spearheads global strategic initiatives and AI efforts at Amazon Web Services, consulting with leaders worldwide on business transformation and how to harness AI to fuel innovation, growth, and market expansion.

Before joining AWS, Chris held leadership roles at Scholastic Media, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Relevent Sports Group, where he led international commercial strategies to drive growth and create impactful experiences for consumers. He also provides advisory support to startups in the media and sports sectors.

Chris holds an MBA, along with master’s degrees in psychology and education from Indiana University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

David shares his time across a portfolio across the financial and health technology sectors. Currently he leads Eclipse International in London, an advisory firm focused on global energy and environmentals products. He is also managing partner of Healthspan Alpha LLP, funding and building companies promoting human healthspan. He and his wife have lived in London, UK since 2009. Originally from southern Illinois, David holds a BS and MS from UIUC in Electrical Engineering.

Jim joined the Foundation in July 2015 as president/CEO. He serves as the University of Illinois’ chief development officer and provides strategic oversight and support for a comprehensive fundraising operation for the University of Illinois System and its three universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, and Springfield. Prior to joining the Foundation, Jim served as president and CEO of the University of Arizona Foundation and president and CEO of the University of Northern Colorado Foundation. He previously held senior-level positions at Northwest Missouri State University, Clarkson University, University of Arizona, and Iowa State University. Jim earned a master’s degree in management systems from Clarkson University and a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Northwest Missouri State.

Keith is a high impact, authentic technology executive, with a proven international track record developing collaborative, empowered, high-performing teams that consistently exceed sales and revenue targets. 

Originally from Chicago, Keith has held several executive positions throughout his career with experience building businesses and scaling teams from the ground up. Keith is currently the Head of EMEA and APAC for Clearwater Analytics. Prior to Clearwater, Keith was the Head of Business Development for the Aladdin business in EMEA, responsible for the European sales and go to market strategy for The Aladdin business. 

Keith has a BA from the University of Illinois and MBA from DePaul University, Chicago.