ICE-Costain health and safety lecture 2024: eliminating harm through leadership

Sam White

Sam White joined the Executive Board of Costain in January 2022, as Managing Director of the Natural Resources Division. Sam is responsible for the Costain teams delivering complex infrastructure programmes across energy, water and defence sectors.

Sam joined Costain from Babcock International Group where he was responsible for overseeing the delivery of infrastructure and engineering services in the UK, Europe, North America and Brazil. He previously held leadership positions in BAE Systems and General Dynamics.

A member of Costain’s Executive SHE Committee, Sam is a passionate advocate of safety, health and environment and inclusivity in the workplace. Sam has a BSc in Business from the University of Wales Cardiff, an MBA from the University of Strathclyde and is an executive coach and board mentor, specialising in supporting the development of diverse talent.

Stuart Hughes

Stuart's guiding principle for Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) is that a healthy and safe work environment is a fundamental human right. Throughout his 19 years as an OSH professional, Stuart has focused on ensuring the working environment enables people to thrive and flourish.

Currently, Stuart is the head of health and safety for Mercedes AMG Petronas Forumula One Team, who won eight consecutive constructor world championships and seven consecutive driver world championships.

Previously, he has worked for KPMG as a subject matter expert within their Sustainability Services team, implemented safety management systems for Veolia Environmental Services across their largest European waste contract and enforced health and safety legislation as an environmental health officer for the City of Westminster and Camden Council.

Proud to be a chartered member of IOSH and a committed volunteer, he is currently the president of IOSH.

Stuart brings all his passion for OSH and experience to promote the societal benefit the OSH profession brings to the world of work, to inspire both the membership and wider profession to recognise the difference they make. As a first-career safety professional, Stuart aims to inspire a future generation of OSH leaders, leveraging OSH as a purpose-driven career that has a positive global impact.

Prof Priti Parikh

Professor Priti Parikh is the director of UCL’s Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction and the founding director of its Engineering for International Development Centre. The centre’s key research interests include finding locally acceptable water, sanitation and energy solutions in low- to middle-income countries. 
 
Parikh has more than 20 years’ engineering consultancy experience in the UK, Asia and Africa, which has included working with slum communities to design infrastructure. In 2019, the Royal Academy of Engineering and Bboxx awarded her a five-year fellowship to fund research into how smart solar tech can improve access to energy in sub-Saharan Africa.
 
An ICE trustee since 2023, Parikh also sits on the board of the Happold Foundation, a charity helping engineers to participate in humanitarian projects around the globe. 
 
Apolitical, an online knowledge-sharing platform for public servants worldwide, named Parikh on its 100 Most Influential Academics in Government list in 2021. The following year, she won a Top 50 Women in Engineering Award from the Women’s Engineering Society.