A Resounding Success: Reflecting on the PRME UK & Ireland Doctoral Colloquium and Conference 2025 at Queen's Business School, Belfast

What an incredible few days in Belfast!

The PRME Chapter UK & Ireland, in partnership with Queen's Business School, Queen's University Belfast, recently hosted our 2025 Doctoral Colloquium and Annual Conference, and it was a truly enriching experience for all involved. Held at the impressive Queen's Business School campus in Riddel Hall, the events brought together doctoral students, academics, and practitioners committed to advancing responsible management education.

Doctoral Colloquium: Nurturing Future Leaders (Tuesday 17 June 2025)

Organised by Dr Rachel Welton, the Doctoral Colloquium on Tuesday 17 June was a fantastic start to our week, offering invaluable support and guidance to our emerging researchers. Doctoral students had the opportunity to gain valuable feedback on their research and receive practical advice on pursuing a career in academia. The event took place in the Student Hub at Queen's Business School.

The day commenced at 12:00pm with a warm welcome and icebreaker activity led by Dr Marc Duffy from Ulster University, setting a friendly and collaborative tone. Following a networking lunch at 12:30pm, Dr Rachel Welton, Doctoral Colloquium Convenor from Nottingham Business School, introduced the event at 1:00pm. A highlight was the insightful keynote address at 1:00pm by Dr Sajia Ferdous, Lecturer in Organizational Behaviour at Queen's Business School. Dr Ferdous, whose research explores workplace inequality, shared her academic journey since completing her PhD in 2020, offering practical advice for doctoral students on navigating an early career in academia.

The afternoon featured face-to-face roundtables at 2:00pm where participants presented their A1 posters, fostering detailed discussion and constructive feedback from experienced facilitators including Prof. Georgina Gough (UWE Bristol), Dr Stuart McClure (Queen's University Belfast), Dr Mohamed Saeudy (University of Bedfordshire), Dr Heike Schröder-Altmann (Queen's University Belfast), Dr Rachel Welton (Nottingham Trent University), and Dr Marc Duffy (Ulster University).

Dr Mohamed Saeudy then provided an informative session at 3:15pm on "Utilising AI Tools to Support your Research," offering practical insights for doctoral students. A lively panel discussion at 3:45pm on "Top Tips for Doctoral Students: How to Develop your Publication Journey" featured Prof. Georgina Gough, Dr Juliet Hassard, and Prof. Simon Teasdale, moderated by Dr Rachel Welton, providing invaluable advice on publication strategy. The day concluded at 4:15pm with "One Career, Multiple Paths: Exploring Different Academic Career Journeys in Higher Education," a panel featuring Dr Lisa Bradley, Julie McCandless, and Dr Charles Vincent, moderated by Dr Laura Steele, offering diverse perspectives on academic careers.

For those keen to explore Belfast, an optional city walking tour was available at 6:00pm, followed by an optional social dinner at 7:00pm at the Academy Restaurant, Ulster University Belfast Campus, providing further networking opportunities.

Day One: Inspiring Discussions and Diverse Perspectives (Wednesday 18 June 2025)

The main conference kicked off on Wednesday 18 June with a packed programme of keynote addresses, panel discussions, paper sessions, and workshops centred on the broad theme of ethical, responsible, and sustainable business and management education.

The day began with registration and refreshments at 8:00am. This was followed by a welcome at 9:00am from Prof. M. N. Ravishankar, Dean of Queen's Business School, and at 9:10am from Prof. Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas, Chair of PRME Chapter UK & Ireland. The first keynote address at 9:20am was delivered by Ambassador David Donoghue, Honorary Professor of Practice at Queen's Business School. This was followed by a compelling panel discussion at 9:40am on "Navigating the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Sustainability Landscape in 2025," featuring Leeanne Armstrong, Ambassador David Donoghue, Colin Jess, and Dr Meredith Storey, with Dr Denise Currie moderating.

The remainder of the day, from 11:00am to 12:00pm, 2:00pm to 3:00pm, and 3:30pm to 4:30pm, was filled with engaging parallel sessions covering a wide array of topics. These included Mindset, Pedagogy & Curriculum for Sustainability, Commerciality & Sustainability, Community-Driven Learning, Interactive Workshops on Gamifying Sustainability and Building Communities in Decolonising Business Schools in Context, AI & Digital Technologies, Innovations in Pedagogy, Sustainability & Entrepreneurship Education, Impactful Learning, Employability & Sustainability, Labour, Economy & Sustainability, and a Co-creation workshop on Developing a Community of Practice within UK & Ireland PRME.

Another insightful keynote address was given at 12:05pm by Prof. Joanne Murphy, Professor of Inclusive Leadership, University of Birmingham. This was followed by a poignant panel discussion at 12:25pm on "The Role of Business and Management in Conflict, War, & Peacebuilding," featuring Alison Currie, Naoimh McNamee, Prof. Joanne Murphy, and Enda Young, moderated by Dr Laura Steele.

The day concluded with a keynote address at 4:35pm from student activist Cormac Savage. The Conference Dinner at 7:00pm included a 'fireside chat' with Prof. Carole Parkes, Professor Emeritus of Responsible Management & Leadership, University of Winchester, and Prof. Sheila Killian, Professor Emeritus of Accountability, University of Limerick.

Day Two: Collaboration and Community Building (Thursday 19 June 2025)

Day two, Thursday 19 June, continued the momentum with further opportunities for learning and collaboration. The morning began with registration and refreshments at 8:00am, and a unique "A Moment of Mindfulness: Moving from Burnout to Balance with Caroline Stewart" session at 8:20am.

Prof. Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas provided a welcome and overview for the day at 9:00am, followed by a keynote address at 9:05am from Dr Meredith Storey and Sophie Kacki of the PRME Secretariat. A panel discussion at 9:25am on "Community Building for Social, Environmental, & Economic Impact" featured Prof. Robert Davison, Sophie Kacki, Dr Nisha Tandon OBE, and Nessa Whelan, moderated by Prof. M. N. Ravishankar.

Parallel sessions from 10:00am to 11:00am and 2:00pm to 3:00pm continued to explore critical themes. These included Collaborative Pedagogy, Innovations in Pedagogy, PRME SIP Reporting, an Interactive Workshop on Sharing and Developing Best Practice in Sustainable Entrepreneurship, Learning with Communities, Tensions with Stakeholders, Sustainable Education & Working with Business, Entrepreneurship and Teaching Practices, and an Interactive Workshop on Collaborative Sustainability Integration.

The afternoon also included the PRME Chapter UK & Ireland AGM at 11:30am and a PRME UK & Ireland Local Network Showcase (Led by Dr Rachel Welton, Dr Marc Duffy and Anna Egan) at 12:30pm, highlighting the fantastic work being done across our community.

The conference drew to a close at 3:10pm with a powerful "Call to Action on Community and Collaboration in PRME" delivered by Dr Meredith Storey and Sophie Kacki (PRME Secretariat) and Prof. Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas and Dr Laura Steele (PRME Chapter UK & Ireland Steering Committee).

This was followed by concluding remarks, thanks, and farewells at 3:30pm.

We extend our sincerest gratitude to Queen's Business School, Queen's University Belfast, for their exceptional hospitality and for hosting such a successful event.

A huge thank you to all the organisers, including Dr Rachel Welton (Doctoral Colloquium Convenor) and the entire steering committee. We are also incredibly grateful to all the keynote speakers, panellists, and especially our dedicated session and track chairs for their invaluable contributions:

• Dr Karen Cripps (Oxford Brookes University)

• Dr Denise Currie (Queen's University Belfast)

• Nishat Azmat (University of Birmingham)

• Prof. Georgina Gough (UWE Bristol)

• Dr Lisa Bradley (Queen's University Belfast)

• Dr Laura Steele (Queen's University Belfast)

• Dr Marc Duffy (Ulster University)

• Dr Mohamed Saeudy (University of Bedfordshire)

• Prof. Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas (Ravensbourne University)

• Dr Rachel Welton (Nottingham Business School)

• Dr Stephanie Graham (Queen's University Belfast)

• Dr Stuart McClure (Queen's University Belfast)

• Dr Heike Schröder-Altmann (Queen's University Belfast)

• Dr Xinwu He (Queen's University Belfast)

  

  
  

We look forward to seeing you all at next year's PRME Chapter UK & Ireland Conference!