Festival of Inspiration 2026

George Imafidon MBE is an award-winning humanitarian engineer and social impact leader from Peckham, South London. George's passion for sustainability and innovation is expansive. Named Young Engineer of the Year in 2022, he is CEO of Motivez, an organisation dedicated to supporting young people from underrepresented backgrounds to access opportunities, particularly within science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).  

George is also a Race Engineer with Team X44, Sir Lewis Hamilton's electric race team, as well as a board member at The Hamilton Commission. He serves as a board member at the Co-op Foundation and active alumni of The Amos Bursary where he helped raised £1 million for the charity to expand their support for young people.  In 2023, George was recognised for his work in the King's Birthday Honours List for services to young people in STEM. He was also named as one of the top Black entrepreneurs to watch by HSBC in 2023. 

Laura-Jane Silverman MBE is the Head and Co-founder LSE Generate, managing the entrepreneurship centre in London and its international chapters across the globe. Prior to joining LSE, LJ founded and led a careers and recruitment consultancy focused on climate and sustainability sectors, and earlier in her career worked in television and media. Her work focuses particularly on social innovation, healthy ageing, and mission-driven entrepreneurship, with a strong interest in how innovation ecosystems can contribute to more inclusive and sustainable futures. In 2026, she was awarded an MBE for services to social innovation and education.