PUBLIC EVENT
Energy is the backbone of our society – without it, we simply cannot function. Faced with new geopolitical risks, climate change, population growth and a rapidly developing technologies that consume more energy than ever, how do we build an energy system that balances resilience, affordability and sustainability in a world that is fast changing?
This year’s Hinton Lecture will be delivered by Zoë Yujnovich, CEO at National Grid. Zoë was appointed last year to lead the National Grid's next chapter, including overseeing the Great Grid Upgrade, a multi-billion-pound extension and upgrade project to modernise Britain’s electricity transmission network.
Zoë will share insights and perspectives on leading National Grid through this critical evolution.
The event will conclude with a live audience Q&A, chaired by Sir John Lazar CBE FREng, software engineer and President of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
About the Hinton Lecture
The Hinton Lecture is the Academy’s flagship annual lecture, named after the late Lord Hinton of Bankside OM KBE FRS FREng, the first President of the Academy. For nearly 50 years, the annual Hinton Lecture has hosted some of the world’s leading voices in engineering. They’ve shared bold visions for the future on cutting edge technologies to emerging challenges and reflected on the differences being made by the latest breakthroughs.
Recording notice
Please note this event will be recorded and published on the Royal Academy of Engineering website. Your video will be off and your account will be muted throughout the entire event. Only the speakers and presentations will be visible on your screen.
Accessibility
It is very important to the Royal Academy of Engineering that our events are accessible to all. If you have any accessibility requirements, please contact the Events team at your earliest convenience so that necessary arrangements can be made. Contact details: [email protected].
Further information about accessibility at Prince Philip House can be found at: https://raeng.org.uk/about-us/accessibility.
Photography/filming notice
Please note that photography/filming may take place during this event. All photographs and videos will be securely stored on the Academy’s servers and used for editorial, marketing and media use by the Academy and selected press or industry media. Please let us know if you do not agree to this processing. Please refer to our General Privacy Policy for more details.
Cancellations
All cancellation requests must be received in writing via email to the Academy Events Team. A request for cancellation (and refund) will be accepted up to the deadline 17 September. Royal Academy of Engineering must make commitments to suppliers at that time and making changes will result in additional costs or penalties. If the cancellation request is received after the deadline, we cannot issue a refund.
Diversity monitoring form
The Academy is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and one of our goals is to develop an engineering community fit for the future. To help us achieve this, we would like to collect some basic anonymous data about the event attendees. If you would like to help, please complete the diversity monitoring form by logging into your user account on our website and completing ‘Update my D&I data’.
Zoë Yujnovich
Appointed CEO of National Grid in 2025, Zoë is a globally recognised leader with a distinguished track record of driving performance and delivering strategic impact across complex international businesses. At National Grid, she leads a business of 33,000 colleagues, spanning US, UK and European energy markets, with £70 billion of capital investment to be deployed across the Group to 2031.
Over the course of her career, she has held senior operational, commercial and strategic roles, working across multiple geographies in the energy and natural resources sectors. She joined National Grid after a decade with Shell where she ran their global integrated gas and upstream business, and was a member of Shell’s Executive Committee. Zoë began her career at Rio Tinto as an Engineer. She started in frontline operational roles deeply embedded within the community as she developed her career in increasingly challenging management roles. Over her career she has held roles in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Netherlands, US, and UK.
Zoë serves as a Non-Executive Director of Unilever plc, sits on the Boards of the British American Business Council and the Edison Electric Institute, and is a member of both the US National Petroleum Council and the UK’s Business Council.
Sir John Lazar CBE FREng
President of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Sir John serves as Chair of the Raspberry Pi Foundation, which empowers young people through computing and digital technologies. He is also a co-founder, General Partner, and a Limited Partner at Enza Capital, which supports tech-driven solutions to major challenges in Africa. He serves on several African tech company boards, and was previously Chair of What3words.
Programme*
| Time | Action |
| 6.00pm | Registration and refreshments |
| 6.30pm |
Welcome and introduction Sir John Lazar CBE FREng, President, Royal Academy of Engineering |
| 6.35pm | Hinton Lecture 2026 Zoë Yujnovich, CEO, National Grid |
| 7.00pm | Q&A session with audience |
| 7.28pm |
Closing remarks Sir John Lazar CBE FREng, President, Royal Academy of Engineering |
| 7.30pm | Drinks reception |
| 8.00pm | Close of event |
*programme subject to change