The 2011 Conference chairs

Charlie Hughes

Charlie will serve as the overall event MC.

He is Chairman of Smart Futures, an international consultancy specialising in sustainable development and urban regeneration advisory services for Governmental, municipal, multi-national corporate and private investor/developer clients. His key interest is in competitive sustainable cities, and the political, policy and investment drivers which support them. Other current and past roles include:

• Development manager for Prudential on one of the largest projects in the UK for a new sustainable urban community in the South of England for 10,000 homes, employment, education, health, community and other related facilities.
• Member of the Scientific Panel for Expo Italia Real Estate (EIRE).
• Chairman of the European Urban Regeneration Council of the Urban Land Institute.
• Visiting Professor at the Sorbonne in Paris and Abu Dhabi.
• From 2007-2009 He was Spatial Planning and Sustainable Development Advisor to the Government of Montenegro.
• He has been responsible for leading major urban regeneration projects in Italy, Greece, France, Serbia, Russia and throughout the UK

Other Experience:

• Consultant to Places for People, one of the largest registered social landlords in the UK, advising on the application of the EU JESSICA structured finance system to major urban regeneration projects in the North East of England. 
• Advisor to various multi-national companies on the integration of Corporate social responsibility, sustainable development and real estate, and has presented papers on this subject to international conferences in the USA, Sweden, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Turkey, Hong Kong and Australia.  In November 2002, for his pioneering work in this field, he was presented with the CoreNet Global Innovators Award. 
• First chairman of the Judging Panel for the CoreNet/American Institute of Architects Global Sustainable Design Leadership Awards.
• Chairman of the Judging Panel for an International Masterplanning Competition (Velika Plaza) for the Government of Montenegro.
• Chairman of the Board for the Port of Belgrade for a 400 ha waterfront regeneration with 9km River Danube water frontage - Port of Belgrade, Serbia.
• Member of the EU Fifth Framework CABERNET (Concerted Action on Brownfield and Economic Regeneration Network) programme set up by the European Commission to establish and disseminate best practice in sustainable brownland regeneration throughout the European Union. 
• External advisor on new City Spatial Plan, City of Riga, Latvia.
• External advisor on new Trans-European (TEN-T) highway and river crossing (€1.2bn PFI) Riga, Latvia.
• Advisor on the Real Estate Export potential of the Baltic States for the UK Trade and Industry Department.
• Spatial Planning and Strategic Development Advisor on Government owned waterfront property around the Grand Harbour for the Government of Malta.
• Appointed by the EU Commission as a member of the expert working group established to develop the Thematic Strategy on the Urban Environment, a key action under the Sixth Community Environment Action Programme.  His specific responsibility was to assess areas of research and skills necessary to drive sustainable competitive European Cities under the four key themes of the urban strategy viz sustainable urban management, sustainable transportation, sustainable design and sustainable construction.
• Consultant advisor to the Waterfront Expo Group with responsibility for integrating exhibition and conference content with the key competitive and sustainability agendas of international cities.
• From 1986-2008 he was founding Managing Director and subsequently Chairman of Miller Hughes Associates, an international architectural and urban planning consultancy based in the UK.

Neil Baxter

Secretary & Treasurer of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), Neil was previously principal of his own architectural and interpretation consultancy and Development Director of GBPT.

Neil has lectured on urbanism, written for The Daily Telegraph, Herald, Sunday Herald, Homes & Interiors and the AJ, and is a frequent media spokesman.

Neil wrote The Wee Green Book, a history of Glasgow Green, co-authored Pat Lally’s Lazarus Only Done it Once, edited the Glasgow medieval history, A Tale of Two Towns, the monograph Matt Steele, Architect, A Biography and A Life in Cities, the autobiography of David Mackay (MBM, Barcelona).

In May 2008, Neil received Glasgow’s Lord Provost’s Award for services to heritage.