Join us to celebrate a special milestone for our new professors and hear about their inspiring career journeys. Doors for this event will open at 16.45, with the lectures to commence at 17.00. A drinks reception will be held immediately after the lecture at 17:30.

Professor Emily Williams

Championing equity in research and practice: An enthusiast’s journey

Abstract

Emily Williams' inaugural lecture, "Championing Equity in Research and Practice: An Enthusiast’s Journey," reflects on her career path and contributions to social epidemiology and EDI in universities. She shares her academic journey from focusing on psychosocial risk factors for long-term conditions disease, to the development of interventions to improve race equity within healthcare programmes. Emily will discuss her move into EDI leadership, working to address inequalities in experiences for students and staff and the new skills she needed to do this work. She emphasises the importance of enthusiasm and collaboration in driving meaningful change in EDI and health inequalities, and towards building positive research culture.

Biography

Emily Williams is the Faculty’s Vice Dean (People and Culture) and Professor of Diversity, Development and Inclusion. Emily’s earlier research used observational data to examine ethnic differences in psychosocial risk factors for coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes, involving collaborations with Imperial College London, Monash University, and the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute. More recently, Emily's work has explored ethnic inequalities in healthcare access and educational outcomes. She has led interventions to improve representation and outcomes for racially minoritised students. Before joining King’s, she was Director of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at the University of Surrey and she now leads the People and Culture strategy for FoLSM.