Professor Abed Peerally, (Commonwealth Scholar, PhD Plan Pathology, University of Manchester), currently the Chairman of the Road Development Authority of Mauritius, was selected by the Royal Society/Nature to participate in their ‘Tomorrow’s Giants’ Conference, held at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, on 1 July 2010.
The conference formed part of the commemoration of the 350th anniversary of the Royal Society and aimed to reflect on the qualities and attributions of the intellectual and professional giants of tomorrow.
The 350 participants included: Professor Sir Martin Lees, President of the Royal Society, Dr Philip Campbell, Editor in Chief of Nature, David Willetts, MP, Minister for Universities and Science, and Professor Dame Sally Davies, Director General and Chief Medical Officer, UK.
Discussion centred on the challenges facing scientific research such as access to funding and an increasingly globalized economy. Mentoring by experienced scientists was felt to be of continued importance in developing future scientists.
Professor Peerally’s attendance was sponsored by the Road Development Authority and Bionet International, Surrey, UK. As part of his trip he was also able to visit developments in London for the 2012 Olympic Games and to find out about the London Road Landscaping Renovation Programme.
