Alice Charles

Alice Charles is renowned for her former role as the Lead of Cities, Infrastructure and Urban Services for the World Economic Forum, pivotal in planning and implementing forward-thinking urban development schemes worldwide. Now the Director of Cities, Planning and Design for Arup, Alice is in high demand as a keynote speaker due to her 18 years of experience in the industry. As a speaker, Alice educates her audiences on all aspects of city and urban planning, construction, transport, energy and climate change – respected by the world’s most significant authorities.

In her role as the Head of Cities and Urban Development for the World Economic Forum (WEF), Alice was responsible for managing all projects and subgroups involved with urbanisation, city schemes and future-proofing of areas. Also accountable for developing the WEF’s Fourth Industrial Revolution City Preparedness Protocol, Alice applied her knowledge to ensure city leaders could effectively prepare to increase technology usage in smart city implementation. Alice has also been responsible for the management of the Future of Urban Development and Services Initiative, the Global Future Council on Cities and Urbanisation and the Global Agenda Council on the Future of Cities.

Underpinned by the qualifications she obtained, including a BSc in Environmental Planning and two Master’s degrees in Business Admin and Global Leadership, Alice’s career began working as a chartered planner at GVA UK. She progressed and established her own planning consultancy in 2011, before moving into government work in 2012. Alice joined the Irish Parliament, tasked with drafting new policies on urban planning in addition to managing the EU legislation for the Department of Housing and Planning. In 2018 Alice attended the Smart City Expo World Congress where she addressed innovative forms of collaboration in city development during her keynote speech. She has also been a Chartered Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Irish Planning Institute, and has also worked with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government Ireland and Jacobs Engineering.

Her ability to educate an audience and drive them to change has seen her continually asked to present at conferences across the globe, including the MIT Senseable City Lab 2019 and the panel at the Northern Ireland Women's Leadership Conference in 2018. Recently named on the Irish Echo 40 Under 40 award, Alice Charles is widely recognised as an outstanding contributor to global affairs in the urban planning field. A fantastic and professional speaker, Alice is the perfect choice of keynote speaker for events if you require an unrivalled voice on the future of smart cities.

In April 2024 we sat down virtually with Alice Charles to discuss the fragmentation in City Governance and the impacts this might have on the fight against global climate change. Watch our Exclusive Interview with Alice Charles.