We're delighted to have an amazing line up of speakers this year. You can find out more about them here.

Jonathan Ebbs has a background in advice and information before stumbling into the world of business and enterprise! He has a strong track record in creating and delivering innovative projects across Greater Manchester including Start Up Engines, Big Ideas Generators and Build a Business. He is currently managing the BIPC GM, and two UK SPF projects working closely with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

Jaselle Edward-Gill is Program Associate at the Mozilla Foundation. Her career has traversed corporate banking, management consulting and research. Holding an MSc. in Politics, Economics, and Philosophy from the University of Hamburg, her academic focus was on responsible AI exploring concepts such as transparency, the role of democracy in AI, and digital governance underscoring her commitment to ethical advancements in artificial intelligence.

In addition to her academic achievements, Jaselle has made significant contributions within industry including roles within a digital innovation start-up, bringing a forward-thinking perspective to the ever-evolving tech landscape, as well as previously holding a position as a research assistant at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications AI4NDM, where her work centred around the intersection of AI, natural disaster management, and digital humanitarianism.

Her current role at Mozilla is based within the Responsible Computing Challenge team, working to embed ethics into curricula that educate the next generation of technologists through international grant-making, community-building and student engagement.

Dr Daisy Fancourt is Professor of Psychobiology & Epidemiology at University College London and Head of the Social Biobehavioural Research Group. Her research focuses on the effects of social factors on health, including loneliness, social isolation, social & community assets, arts and cultural engagement, and social prescribing. She is Director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre on Arts and Health, a Technical Advisor to the WHO, an Expert Scientific Adviser to UK Government, a BBC New Generation Thinker, and a World Economic Forum Global Shaper. Daisy has published over 250 peer-reviewed papers, 2 books, and over a dozen book chapters and given over 40 keynotes around the world. She is listed by Clarivate as one of the most highly cited scientists in the world.

Diego Gracia is Head of the International Cooperation Service at the Spanish Ministry of Culture. Among other tasks related to cooperation at the national and international level, he is responsible for the creation in 2017 of the Library Laboratories project, whose objective is to explore ways in which libraries function as places of creation, collective experimentation and shared learning. In addition, he directs the NAPLE Sister Libraries project, whose objective is to promote bilateral cooperation between public libraries from different European countries and which currently brings together 142 libraries from 17 countries. From 2023, he is a member of IFLA’s Public Libraries Section.

Isobel Hunter is the first Chief Executive of Libraries Connected. She established and grew the organisation from a small team of six to one that now has a dedicated programmes and regional team, with a high profile in national media and with government.

She believes that libraries are central to people’s lives and communities across the country and is committed to working with members to help develop and advocate for the public library sector.

Ed Jewell is President Elect of Libraries Connected. Ed serves as President Elect from January 2023 until June 2024, President from June 2024 until June 2026 and Past President from June 2026 until June 2027. Ed is the first Libraries Connected President from outside England. He has led Jersey’s library service since 2014 and has worked in libraries across the Channel Islands for 25 years. In 2020, Ed was given the Jersey Bailiff’s Award for services to the community during the pandemic. As President, Ed has pledged to strengthen the charity’s local support networks, develop its leadership programmes and promote the health and wellbeing benefits of public libraries.

Stephanie Jones is an experienced customer services’ manager, learning the craft through working in catering and hospitality management. She turned to a career in libraries after teaching and studying for a PhD in English Literature, where she became passionate about engaging with resources and educating young minds. She has been Services Manager at The Hive since 2019 and leads the integrated academic and public library service.

Ayub Khan is President of Libraries Connected and Head of Local Services for Warwickshire County Council. He began his career in education and children’s services. His interest extends to international library development, with a strong focus on diversity and inclusion and has worked on library projects in several countries. In 2013, Ayub was awarded an MBE for his services to libraries and he is a past President of CILIP and our former Treasurer. He is also Director of Designing Libraries the CIC for library buildings and internal design. Ayub is also Deputy Chair of the Midlands Arts Council England Board.

Nicola Levin is Participation Manager for Culture Leicestershire, the County Council’s Museum, Heritage, Libraries, Collections, Learning and Participation services. They are a new Arts Council England, National Portfolio Organisation and Nicola leads on the Creative Expressions in Libraries Strand alongside the Home Library Service offer.

After university Nicola began her career with the council as a Volunteer Officer and was honoured to receive the Volunteer Manager of the Year award 2018 from the national Heritage Volunteering Group. She is passionate about ensuring local people have the opportunities to engage with and help shape the library and heritage services; in her current role as Participation Manager, co-creating with local communities is at the heart of what she does. She has seen how this helps enhance individuals’ wellbeing, inspires their creativity, and makes libraries into vibrant community hubs.

Emily Macaulay is the Head of Delivery and Operations for CONNECTED BY DATA, a small not-for-profit campaign to give communities a powerful say in decisions about data and AI to create a just, equitable and sustainable world. They bring together data experts, community facilitators and campaigners to help communities advocate for how the data affecting them should be used and governed in their best interest.

Emily’s background is firmly rooted in the service delivery of public and charity sectors, most recently for nearly a decade working for the charity that runs all public libraries across Devon and Torbay. Before that, after completing her Criminology degrees, she worked in the criminal justice system across Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

During her time in the library sector Emily delivered on her passion for civic impact and social justice and led the Exeter Library team that won a Civic Award from Exeter Living in 2019. During the COVID lockdowns Emily secured Arts Council England funding to commission local artists to explore communities experiences of grief and loss with libraries being spaces people were already sharing their collective traumas.  You can connect with Emily here.

Helen Milner has over 30 years’ experience of working in and leading organisations creating and delivering education over and about the internet. Helen was awarded an OBE for services to digital inclusion in the 2015 Queen’s Birthday Honours List. In 2017 she won the title of Digital Leader of the Year (UK) and was named by Computer Weekly as the 14th most influential person in UK IT in 2020. Working with Democracy and an Advisor on Digital Engagement to the Public Accounts Committee. She is a Board Member of FutureDotNow, a member of the Minister’s Digital Skills Partnership Board, and Helen is on the Adult Advisory Group for MaPS (the UK’s Money and Pension Service).

Cormac Russell is a social explorer, an author and a much sought-after speaker. He is the Founding Director of Nurture Development and a member of the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) Institute, at DePaul University, Chicago.

Over the last 25 years, Cormac’s work has demonstrated an enduring impact in 35 countries around the world. He has trained communities, agencies, NGOs and governments in ABCD and other community-based approaches in Africa, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Europe and North America.

His most recent books are The Connected Community- Discovering the Health, Wealth, and Power of Neighborhoods (Coauthor John McKnight); Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2022, and Rekindling Democracy – A Professional’s Guide to Working in Citizen Space; Cascade Books, 2020.

Cormac’s TEDx talk can be viewed here

Ingrid Abreu Scherer works with charities, social enterprises and those who fund them to explore their impact on wellbeing and support their learning. She worked at the What Works Centre for Wellbeing for eight years, leading dozens of evidence projects including on the role of volunteering on wellbeing, the creative pathways to wellbeing, and the impact of Covid-19 on wellbeing inequalities. She has developed a number of guides and resources for charities, including the Online Guide to Measuring Wellbeing Impact, a Brief Guide to Measuring Loneliness, and a Guide to Effective Case Studies. She was Head of Accelerating Innovation at the National Academy for Social Prescribing, where she convened a group of 150 national public, private and third sector organisations working on new approaches to health and wellbeing.

Simon Smith is Libraries and Museum Manager for Reading Borough Council and has worked in public libraries in Reading, Harrow, and Slough for 25 years, in (at last count) 13 different roles. He has been back in Reading since 2016 as head of service, having started his career there some years before. He owes his library career to a brilliant 6-week work experience placement with Cambridgeshire libraries and some inspirational library staff. Reading has seven libraries and a home service and are currently developing a new Central Library with Levelling Up funding in Reading to open in 2025.  He is also secretary-treasurer for Libraries Connected South East.

Gillian Staples is Archives and Collections Lead for Bi-Borough Libraries and Archives where she oversees all the collections and membership functions for the service which serves the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea.

Libraries have always played an important role in her personal and professional life and having spent over two decades working in a variety of mostly public sector organisations, she started and then returned to a local authority library service. This passion started young, being a regular visitor to her local library as a child, taking part in the annual Book Trail activities and meeting inspiring authors like Jacqueline Wilson. Now she loves matching this with my passion for heritage and contributing to creating exciting opportunities for local residents to engage with their service.