Dear World...Thank You

We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

With great regret, we have made the difficult decision that in this period of national mourning we will not go ahead with our end-of-campaign celebrations. For those who were planning to attend College events on 16 or 17 September, your College will be in touch.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions:
events@campaign.cam.ac.uk
+44 (0) 7983 485886

For over eight centuries the world has sent us its greatest minds —

we have responded with ideas that helped change the world.

For over eight years you have sent us your support.

Please join us to see what you have made possible, hear from the brilliant minds rethinking the present, and how we will together reimagine Cambridge's future.

Dear World...Thank you

Your generosity means the world to us.

You are part of an incredible community of donors and alumni that has done an extraordinary thing. What Cambridge does matters to the world, and what you do to support this University and its Colleges is a vital part of this effort. By collectively contributing £2 billion for the campaign for the University and Colleges of Cambridge, you are helping to tackle society’s biggest challenges. You are ensuring that together our ideas and innovations will continue to shape all our futures.

Please join us for a memorable day that celebrates your role in the success of the campaign and its impact on the wider world. It’s a chance to hear first-hand some of the amazing impact stories of the campaign and to see how philanthropy is changing lives.

The event programme

Saturday, 17 September

Events will begin at the Senate House with a welcome from the Vice-Chancellor, followed by a dynamic conversation between leading academic and alumni voices.

Afternoon activities
In the afternoon you can meet scientists, anthropologists, museum curators, and Cambridge students and see where ground-breaking research is taking place. Choose from behind-the-scenes tours or talks on the latest scientific breakthroughs, and witness how philanthropy is reshaping the face of Cambridge and transforming the future.

An evening celebration
The day will culminate in an unforgettable gala dinner in the atmospheric surroundings of the cloisters of Nevile’s Court at Trinity College.

The Conversation

The social and technological revolutions of the past two decades have reshaped our world in profound and unexpected ways. While many gaps have closed globally, others have been newly exposed and are widening rapidly.

How do we navigate the landscape — cultural, social and political — in the face of continuing uncertainty?

We invite you to join an illuminating conversation with some of Cambridge’s leading voices and influential alumni, who will bring a fresh perspective on the challenges society faces and consider how we chart a course towards a more equitable future for all.

Those sparking the conversation are:

• Moderator Dr Gillian Tett (Clare 1986), Financial Times Editor-at-large, US

• Professor Diane Coyle, Co-director of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy

• Iain Drayton (Trinity Hall 1991), Founding supporter of 'Get In Cambridge'

• Lord Simon Woolley, Principal of Homerton College and Founder of Operation Black Vote

Afternoon activities

Please RSVP with your top two choices to: events@campaign.cam.ac.uk
+44 (0) 7983 485886

Behind-the-scenes tours

Chemistry for better health

For over twenty years, Professors Tuomas Knowles and Michele Vendruscolo have sought to understand how neurodegenerative diseases develop, and the physical havoc they cause in the brain. Having made a series of key discoveries in recent years, they will discuss advances in understanding neurodegenerative diseases in an intimate conversation with guests.

Experience a close-up tour of the Chemistry of Health Building and the Una Finlay Lab, where their work takes place. Brought to life with real-world examples, hear first-hand how this game-changing environment facilitates the translation of scientific breakthroughs into treatments. Learn what we now know about protein misfolding, how this generates improved diagnostic tools and therapies and what hope this offers patients affected by these devastating diseases.

Limited to 20 guests.

Where scientific enquiry meets entrepreneurial spirit

Researchers at the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (CEB) address and find solutions to some of the most challenging problems affecting society today. Their work fuses leading biotechnology research with chemical engineering skills and brings an entrepreneurial outlook to everything from wearable healthcare technologies to chemical product and process design.

Hear from Professor David Fairen-Jimenez about CEB's work and their new home, which opened in 2018 and has fostered new collaborations. See the technologies of tomorrow in their very earliest stages of development today.

Limited to 20 guests.

The world in three dimensions: sculpture and ceramics from the Stone Age to today

As humans, we have always made sense of the world through art, as demonstrated by the paintings that line the walls of our galleries and homes. And the three-dimensional objects we make and own are just as important in helping us understand ourselves and each other across time, place and culture.

Luke Syson, Director of the Fitzwilliam Museum, has curated a brand-new tour exclusively for this event. He will guide guests through some of the world’s most fascinating and beautiful artefacts, from Palaeolithic sculpture to spectacular contemporary ceramics.

Following this tour through selected galleries of the magnificent Fitzwilliam Museum, applied arts curator Helen Ritchie will share her insights on a range of personally chosen ceramics, giving guests a rare chance to get up close with items from the collection.

Limited to 20 guests.

An odyssey into the future of healthcare: new discoveries, new treatments and new hope

Cambridge's pioneering medical research leads the world — and changes lives.

Thanks to visionary philanthropy, the Wellcome-MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Department of Haematology, and the new Heart & Lung Research Institute are advancing innovation across the full journey of medical discovery.

From fundamental biological research to clinical trials of potentially life-changing new treatments, our work on cardiorespiratory diseases, blood cancer, regenerative medicine, and gene and cell therapy is touching your life — and the life of someone you know. Hear from our experts in stem cell medicine, haematology and cardiopulmonary medicine. Get an exclusive look at a cell therapy manufacturing facility and a dedicated lab for organ perfusion. Find out how Cambridge is transforming healthcare for the world.

Limited to 20 guests.

Academic discussions and Q&A

Exploring humanity’s future with AI

AI is no longer a technology of the distant future. It is shaping every human endeavour, ranging from health care to policing, and from finance to public policy.

Across all these domains, AI can drive positive transformations. But it can also generate difficult questions of law and ethics. Like any tool, AI is neither good nor bad. It reflects us, in all our troublesome complexity. So how can we ensure AI is a force that benefits humanity?

Hear our experts in conversation and ask them what artificial intelligence means for your world.

Future planet

The scale of the climate crisis requires new thinking and collaborations to find solutions and ensure our planet has a future for all. From computer science to conservation science, how are different disciplines working together? And how does business and industry intersect with academic research?

Join leading voices in the climate conversation, Emily Shuckburgh, Bhaskar Vira, Emily Farnworth and Srinivasan Keshav, for a discussion and Q&A on this planet-wide existential crisis, moderated by an expert in sustainability leadership, Dame Polly Courtice.

Get new insights into the convening power of Cambridge to drive transformative change.

Long-term histories of the Amazon and the role of museums in decolonial times

Amazonia is at the centre of crucial debates concerning the ecological crisis and the future of environmental and cultural heritage. What role should museums have in inclusive conversations about the region and how can collections tell alternative narratives about the long-term relationships between source communities and material culture?

Hear anthropologist Natalia Buitron and archaeologist and curator Jimena Lobo Guerrero Arenas discuss the crucial role that Indigenous communities have in shaping the present and future of museum collections and anthropological and archaeological research.