Inaugural Lecture Series

Inaugural Lectures are an essential feature of faculty life, providing an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of our distinguished academics who have recently been promoted to professorial positions, and to showcase the breadth and depth of the faculty’s outstanding research.

The Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences (FELS) continues to value the tradition, encouraging new Professors to deliver them, and all staff and students to attend.

Inaugural Lectures are a public event and open to everyone - you do not have to be an expert in the field to attend. The University extends the invitation to these lectures to all members of staff, students and their guests as well as our campus partners, and the local community.

Upcoming Inaugural Lectures

FELS Inaugural Lecture with Professor Jon Copley

Wednesday 25 February 2026 at National Oceanography Centre, Southampton.

Professor Jon Copley (School of Ocean and Earth Science).

Beyond the blue planet: exploring life in the deep ocean

Professor Jon Copley (School of Ocean and Earth Science).

 

FELS Inaugural Lecture with Professor Mari Carmen Portillo and Professor Andrew Power

Wednesday 18 March 2026 at Highfield campus, Building 100.

Rethinking research strategy and partnerships to tackle challenges in Long-Term Conditions

Professor Mari Carmen Portillo (School of Health Sciences).

 

Navigating the Geographies of Care: Disability, Support and the Making of Place

Professor Andrew Power (School of Geography and Environmental Science).

 

FELS Inaugural Lecture with Professor Mark Chapman and Professor Tom Gernon

Wednesday 22 April 2026 at Highfield campus, Building 100.

Professor Mark Chapman (School of Biological Sciences).

Professor Tom Gernon (School of Ocean and Earth Science).

FELS Inaugural Lecture with Professor Lyn Ellett and Professor Owen Rackham

Wednesday 10 June 2026 at Highfield campus, Building 100.
 

Are we all paranoid?  A journey into the psychology of paranoia

Professor Lyn Ellett (School of Psychology).

 

Learning the Rules of Life: Using Data to Map, Model and Shape the Cells That Build Us

Professor Owen Rackham (School of Biological Sciences).

 

Previous Inaugural Lectures

2025-26 FELS Inaugural Lecture Series

See details on previous lectures from our 2025-26 Inaugural Lecture Series.

 

 

2024-25 FELS Inaugural Lecture Series

Watch the sessions from our 2024-25 Inaugural Lecture Series.