The Laidlaw Scholars Annual Conference is a celebration of curiosity, collaboration, and leadership. This year, our Oxford Laidlaw Scholar Katherine Ward joined scholars from across the globe in Leeds to share research, spark meaningful conversations, and deepen connections within the vibrant Laidlaw community. From presenting innovative projects to exploring new ideas on leadership, Katherine’s experience reflects the conference’s spirit of discovery and its commitment to shaping future leaders.

We were welcomed with a reception supper at Leeds University, a wonderful opportunity to settle into the scholar community and hear from the programme organisers about the values and principles of the Laidlaw Foundation. With everyone rather tired from long travel days (some students from EPFL in Switzerland woke up at 3am that morning!), the casual evening activities provided by our peers at Leeds were a welcome opportunity to get to know Laidlaw scholars from different universities in a relaxed and informal way. Personally, I ended up in the Student Union bar before taking a wander around the night light art exhibition currently on show around the university campus.

The first full day of the conference opened with an inspiring talk by Khadijah Ibrahiim. She discussed ‘Creating Space For Re-Memory’ and took us on a vivid journey of how she navigates truth and personal integrity through her poetry. Given that the theme of the conference was ‘curiosity’, Khadijah spoke of the importance of questioning our own biases that may foster subjective memories. She encouraged us to be curious about our interpretations of past experiences. Her speech grounded the conference theme, offering insight into how curiosity deeply relates to each of our lives, and suitably prepared us for the thought-provoking day ahead. 

The rest of the morning was spent (curiously!) hearing from other scholars about their summer research or leadership in action projects. The talks were organised in two rounds of parallel sessions focused on different sustainable development goals (SDGs). The groups from Oxford all had the opportunity to present, spread across SDG1 - No Poverty, SDG4 - Quality Education and SDG10 - Reduced Inequalities. I really enjoyed the opportunity to share our work: the other scholars asked thought-provoking questions about the future implications of our findings, and it was exciting to have the opportunity to speak formally in an academically stimulating setting about something we have all grown to be so passionate about. During the session we weren't presenting in, we were able to listen to the research of other scholars. I chose to attend SDG3 - Good Health and Wellbeing. It was fascinating to hear about the innovative projects completed by my peers, on topics ranging from tackling nausea in paediatric chemotherapy patients, to the use of AI in drug discovery. 

After lunch, we moved into a less structured session that showcased more scholars’ academic posters from their research experience. The range of topics explored left me feeling proud and grateful to be part of such an intellectually inspiring community. I really liked the opportunity to discuss our project with people face to face, and it was particularly rewarding to have many of the Laidlaw programme managers come over to our poster and share their excitement about our extracurricular deliveries and research. We then split into group workshops exploring curiosity through the eyes of the child, engaging with a series of activities that encouraged us to ask creative questions. I found this session to be a sweet reminder of the innocent curiosity I had as a younger child, and left feeling inspired to reflect on my motivations and how I can re-incorporate that curiosity appropriately in my everyday life. To finish the day, we heard from different speakers about their second-year Leadership in Action projects. I came to the conference with vague ideas of the area I was interested in, but this session really allowed me to identify my priorities. I am sure I speak on behalf of all the Oxford scholars when I say we are extremely excited for what this opportunity next summer will bring! 

Our evening was spent celebrating with a Gala Dinner. Dressed in our fancy formal attire, we strode across Leeds to meet the scholars from other universities at ‘The Queens’ Hotel’ for an evening of delicious food, lively conversation and dancing! It was lovely to spend the evening chatting away to so many interesting and kind people with whom I would not have crossed paths if not for the Laidlaw community. Oxford terms can feel particularly intense and busy, but it was so nice to take this evening to connect with passionate individuals and share our stories, reminding me of my appreciation and eagerness to apply my studies in the real world through opportunities like Laidlaw. 

The final morning of the conference was led by the fabulous team at the Oxford Character Project, who launched the online programme we will be following as a global cohort across the next six months. It certainly seems like it will be a worthwhile and rigorous journey. I am particularly excited to engage with the activities designed to prompt internal reflection and growth, ultimately preparing us to be considerate and ethical leaders. Overall, I really enjoyed my time at the conference and sit here writing, feeling fulfilled by the opportunities the Laidlaw programme has brought so far, and eager for what the future will hold. Many thanks to the Foundation and Leeds University for organising such an inspiring weekend, and also to our Oxford SDG Impact Lab for their work in making our experience so smooth and enjoyable.