Celebrating Black Excellence in the Built Environment

Celebrating Black Excellence in the Built Environment

Black History Month is a moment to look back. This event is also about what comes next.

Join CIBSE Home Counties South West, the TfL RACE Colleague Network Group and BPIC Network for a panel discussion celebrating the achievements, leadership and influence of Black professionals across the built environment.

Our four panellists bring decades of combined experience across engineering, property, recruitment and network leadership. They will share the career journeys that got them here, the moments that shaped them, and what authentic leadership looks like when you are often the only person in the room who looks like you.

The discussion will cover:

🔹 Career journeys, identity and visibility
🔹 Authentic leadership as a driver of change
🔹 Cross industry collaboration and innovation
🔹 Workplace culture and building environments where diverse talent excels
🔹 Legacy, and how we equip the next generation to shape the sector

Meet the panel

Amos Simbo OBE is the founder of BPIC Network, a leading organisation advancing diversity, inclusion and opportunity across the built environment. A mechanical engineer and industry leader, he was awarded an OBE for services to the construction industry and diversity.

Sanda Mpanza FREC is a senior Talent Acquisition leader with extensive experience delivering strategic workforce solutions for major organisations across the built environment and infrastructure sectors, including Rider Levett Bucknall and Amey. Known for shaping inclusive, future‑focused talent strategies, he is a recognised advocate for creating pathways that enable individuals and organisations to thrive.

Hakeem Makanju CEng MCIBSE is a Chartered Building Services Engineer and Building Services Manager at Transport for London, with nearly 30 years across design, facilities management, safety and sustainability. He chairs the CIBSE Minority Ethnic Groups (MEG) Panel.

Sovina Vernon-White is a Principal Property Surveyor at Places for London with nearly three decades in the sector. She founded SPACE (Speak, Participate, Act, Collaborate, Equalise), a TfL race awareness network fostering inclusion, wellbeing and courageous conversations on race and equity.

Who should attend

This event is open to everyone. Engineers, surveyors, architects, contractors, consultants and students, at any career stage, in or moving towards the built environment.

Details

📅 Thursday 15th October 2026
🕠 17:30 to 20:30
📍 197 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8NJ

Places are limited. Register now to secure yours.