Congress Speakers | The Academy of Urbanism

< Back to Congress 2025 - Utrecht: Healthy Urban Living

The Congress programme brings together leading urban thinkers and practitioners from across the world, including from Utrecht as the host city. The three keynote speakers and others are included below, and more will be added bit by bit.

The full programme can be downloaded at theaou.org/utrecht

Carolyn Steel

Architect and author, Hungry City and Sitopia

Wednesday Keynote

Jan Vapaavuori

Former Mayor of Helsinki

Thursday Keynote

Karin Huber-Heim

Endowed Professor for the Circular Economy, City of Vienna

Friday Keynote

Esther Agricola

Regional Director, BPD

Mariëlle Beenackers

Researcher + Lecturer, Erasmus MC Department of Public Health

Tess Broekmans

Professor of Urban Design, TU Delft

Donica Buisman

Founder and Director, RAUM Utrecht

Matthew Burnett

Co-founder, Make Room and Architect + Urban Strategist, Gehl

Daniel Casas Valle

Founder, The Future Design of Streets

Rutger Dijksterhuis

Alderman for Spatial Planning, Amersfoort

Eelco Eerenberg

Deputy Mayor for Spatial Development, Education and Public Health

Ana Gallego

Lead Urban Designer + Researcher, IAAC Urban Sciences Lab

Marcus Horning

Director of City Planning, Malmö

Kevin McGeough

Head of Strategy and Place-making, Ebbsfleet Development Corporation

Richard Nordier

Lifestyle and Uses Researcher, Urbalyon

Fabienne Plieger

City Ambassador, Utrecht Thirty030

Cedric Ryckaert

Klimaatspeelplaats / Sint-Paulus Primary School, Kortrijk

Bart van der Vossen

Director of Urban Development, City of Utrecht

Ben Wilson

Divisional Director of Development & Regeneration, Glasgow City Council