Speakers
We already have some outstanding speakers lined up, with more to come. News on speakers will be posted here as they are confirmed.
Lord Jack McConnell
Our keynote speaker is Jack McConnell, a member of the House of Lords and First Minister of Scotland (2001-2007). Lord McConnell is Chancellor of the University of Stirling, Co-Chair of the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development; Vice President of UNICEF UK; an adviser to the peace process in the Philippines and Chair of the McConnell International Foundation.
The McConnell International Foundation exists to support those who are working to build peace and sustainable development, particularly but not exclusively in sub-Saharan Africa. They work with local partners to deliver innovative programmes within their priorities of conflict prevention and peacebuilding, education and skills development.
Gordon McInally
We are also delighted to have our own Gordon McInally, Immediate Past President of Rotary International.
A member of the Rotary Club of South Queensferry since 1984, Gordon has been president and vice president of Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland. He has also served Rotary International as a director and as member or chair of several committees. He is currently a Trustee of the Rotary Foundation.
Gordon is a patron of the UK-based charity “Hope and Homes for Children” and led a partnership between that organisation and RIBI to support children in Rwanda who had been orphaned in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. He is also a patron of Trade-Aid, which provides sustainable humanitarian aid to individuals, families, and businesses in the developing world and has recently become a patron of SAFE Families Australia, a Rotary initiative addressing domestic violence. He is also an ambassador for Bipolar UK. Gordon was recognised by the Sino Phil Asia Peace Foundation as it 2024 Humanitarian Laureate.
Mark DiBiase
Mark DiBiase is a two-term Past Rotary District Governor for District 6820 in Central Mississippi, serving as Governor for both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Rotary Years.
He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Grove City College with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Systems. He has 37 years of project, production, engineering, and computer experience, holding a variety of management positions with Milwaukee Electric Tool, James Hardie, US Gypsum, and Armstrong. In 2002, Mark and Rhonda owned and operated Infinite Concepts, a computer network and administration firm located in Greenville, MS. In 2019, Mark was honored as a “Top in Tech” recipient by the Mississippi Business Journal in 2019, and in 2020, he received the Chuck Jordan Leadership Award from the Washington County Economic Alliance for his leadership with local business development. Rhonda and Mark sold their business in December 2021.
Mark joined Rotary in November 2006, is a Past President of the Greenville Rotary Club, and has also served as Assistant Governor. Mark is a multiple Paul Harris Fellow and a Paul Harris Society member. He became a Level 1 Major Donor in 2021.
Professor Tracy Morse
Tracy Morse is a Professor of Environmental Health at the University of Strathclyde, where her work has a strong focus on sustainable development, particularly in low and middle-income countries. She currently serves as a Head of the Centre for Sustainable Development at the University of Strathclyde. With over two decades of living and working in Malawi, her expertise covers a range of topics within environmental health, including water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), food safety, and community development.
Tracy’s contributions extend beyond research; she holds significant roles in several organizations and committees, including the Honorary Vice President of the Royal Environmental Health Institute for Scotland and Trustee of the Malawi Environmental Health Association. She is particularly proud of her Paul Harris Award received from Inverurie Rotary Club in 2021.
Anna Fowlie - CEO, SCVO
Anna joined SCVO as Chief Executive in April 2018. SCVO is the national membership body for the voluntary sector in Scotland, providing services such as payroll, HR and IT as well as lobbying and policy work on behalf of the sector, publishing Third Force News and running the Gathering and the Scottish Charity Awards.
Anna was seconded into theScottish Government to lead on improving outcomes for care experienced children and young people, before moving to the SSSC in 2009. She was on the board of Who Cares? Scotland for 8 years, then joined the Oversight Board for The Promise. She is on the board of Dads Rock, and of Prosper (formerly SCDI). She has a degree in History of Art from Edinburgh University, and is a Chartered Member of the CIPD.
Shahid Khan
Shahid Khan, a 2024 Rotary Peace Fellow, is set to begin his studies at the Rotary Peace Centre at Duke and UNC in North Carolina in summer 2025. He has served in the Scottish civil service as a Senior Policy Advisor since 2019. Educated in both Pakistan and the UK, he earned a bachelor’s in social work and sociology from the University of Punjab and a first-class honours degree in Politics and International Relations from the University of Aberdeen after arriving in the UK as a refugee.
His upbringing in Pakistan as part of the Christian minority deeply influenced his advocacy for peace, justice, and equality. His work led to his forced departure from Pakistan, initially facing detention and later living on limited support in the UK while his asylum claim was processed. After being granted refugee status and eventually British citizenship, Shahid continued his commitment to community service. He co-founded the Global Minorities Alliance and actively supported peace and development projects in Pakistan and Kenya. In 2016, he participated in a fact-finding mission about the refugee crisis in Bangkok and provided evidence to the UK’s Parliamentary Committee on Faith and Belief. Shahid acts as an employability mentor for his alma mater in Aberdeen and has established a refugee allies network within the Scottish Government which has a membership of over 400 civil servants.