Professor John Wood appointed Secretary General of the Association of Commonwealth Universities

Press release – 4 February 2010

The Association of Commonwealth Universities is delighted to announce that Professor John Wood has been appointed Secretary General.

Professor Wood, currently Senior International Relations Adviser to Imperial College London, will take up the post on 1 July 2010. He succeeds Professor John Tarrant in the role.

The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) is the oldest inter-university network in the world, with over 500 members in six continents. It provides services to members, including research and policy analysis and a range of professional networks, as well as hosting several higher education organisations and providing the secretariat for prestigious scholarship schemes.

Dr Theuns Eloff, Chair of the ACU Council and Vice-Chancellor of North-West University, South Africa, welcomed Professor Wood's appointment, saying 'We are excited to acquire the services of such an experienced and able person to lead the ACU in its next development phase. Professor Wood has excellent management and leadership abilities, combined with an extensive international network. This will stand him in good stead in positioning the ACU as a prominent and effective global organisation'.

Professor Wood said 'It is a great honour to be asked to take on this post, especiallyn as the ACU approaches its centenary year. With increasing globalisation and the need to solve the grand challenges facing society, the work and functions of the ACU and its members are going to become even more important than in the past'.

Notes to editors:

1. John Wood graduated from the University of Sheffield University in 1971 with a first class honours degree in metallurgy. He went on to study for his PhD at the University of Cambridge, where he spent his early academic career before joining the Open University in 1978. He was appointed Cripps Professor of Materials Engineering and Head of the Department of Materials Engineering at the University of Nottingham in 1989, and became Dean of Engineering in 1998. He was appointed Chief Executive of the Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils in 2001. He was appointed Principal of the Faculty of Engineering at Imperial College London in 2007, and became Senior International Relations Adviser to Imperial in 2008. Professor Wood was recently elected as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP). He was selected by the European Commission to serve on the newly formed European Research Advisory Board (ERAB) in 2008, and was elected the first chair by its members. He was also appointed as an adviser to the EU Commissioner for Research on international large-scale research infrastructure in 2008. He was elected Chair of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) unanimously by all EU member states and the EU Commission in 2005, and delivered the first ever European Roadmap for large research infrastructures in 2006. Professor Wood was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 1999, in recognition of his contribution to materials science and engineering, innovative strategic planning and activities within engineering education, and was honoured with a CBE for services to science in 2007.

2. The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) was established in 1913. It is a voluntary organisation, registered in England and Wales as a charity (number 314137), and is controlled by its member institutions through an elected Council. Her Majesty the Queen, the Head of the Commonwealth, is Patron of the ACU. The secretariat of the ACU is based in London, UK, with around 50 members of staff.

3. For further information, please contact:

Natasha Lokhun
+44 (0)20 7380 6760
[email protected]