Nike Folayan

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Nike Folayan
Born1978
Alma materUniversity of Kent University of Sheffield
EmployerWSP UK
Known forAssociation for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers (AFBE-UK)

Dr Nike Folayan MBE HonFREng [1] (born 1978) is a Chartered Engineer and a Telecommunications Engineering Consultant. She is co-founder and chair of the Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers[2] that campaigns for more ethnic diversity in UK engineering.

Education and career[edit]

Folayan received an MEng in electronic engineering from the University of Kent, and earned her PhD in antenna design at the University of Sheffield.[3]

After her PhD, Folayan joined Mott MacDonald as a Communications Engineer.[4] Here she "worked on the radio design for a number of tunnels as well as communications systems such as CCTV and public address systems".[5] She joined Parsons Brinckerhoff in 2013, working as a Systems Integration Consultant.[5] She worked on major infrastructure projects including CrossRail and the upgrade of Victoria Station.[6] In 2016 she was promoted to Associate Director for Communications and Control within the Railways Division of WSP.[7]

Campaign for diversity[edit]

In 2008, Folayan won the Precious Award for "Inspiring Leader within the Workplace".[8][9][10] In 2012, Dr Folayan was featured in Powerlist: Britain’s 100 most influential people of African and Caribbean heritage.[11] She was the keynote speaker at the Higher Education Academy STEM annual conference in 2014.[12] She is a trustee at the Engineering Development Trust and a member of the Science Council and Transport for London diversity groups.[13][14][15] She contributed to the Royal Academy of Engineer's diversity strategy, In 2017, Folayan spoke at the Institution of Engineering and Technology's "9 % is Not Enough" conference.[16]

The Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers[edit]

Nike Folayan and her brother Ollie Folayan founded the Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers (AFBE-UK) in 2007 and remain as the organisation's chairperson.[17] In 2011 Vince Cable, then Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills attended the AFBE-UK’s seminar on infrastructure in the UK.[18][19] At the time, he recognised AFBE-UK as "an excellent example of encouraging partnership between stakeholders in the engineering communities and supporting young people as they embark on a range of exciting career paths in science and technology".[18] In 2012 AFBE-UK launched "Making Engineering Hot", a video campaign which promotes engineering to the BME community.[20] In 2016 she coordinated "Transition", which saw students from universities across London take part in a series of employability workshops, CV assessments, mock interviews and engineering challenges.[21][22]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "New Fellows 2022". Retrieved 21 September 2022.
  2. ^ "Home - Association For BME Engineers (AFBE-UK)". afbe.org.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  3. ^ "A sense of belonging in engineering - Create the Future". Create the Future. 9 June 2017. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  4. ^ "Young, gifted and black". Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  5. ^ a b "People integration systems - The IET". www.theiet.org. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Female engineers: The women solving real-world problems". The Independent. 19 October 2015. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  7. ^ "A fascination for TVs inspired me to be an engineer: Nike Folayan - Melan Mag". Melan Mag. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  8. ^ "Enterprising women shine at Precious Awards - Ethnic Now". www.ethnicnow.com. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  9. ^ "Precious Awards 2008". preciousawards.com. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  10. ^ preciousonline (2 December 2008), Precious Awards 2008 | Nike Folayan | Mott Macdonald UK | Winner :: Inspiring Leader within the Workplace, retrieved 20 January 2018
  11. ^ "About Us - Association For BME Engineers (AFBE-UK)". afbe.org.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  12. ^ "STEM Careers for All? Diversity In Engineering | Higher Education Academy". www.heacademy.ac.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  13. ^ "4 volunteers we want to thank - The Science Council". The Science Council. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  14. ^ "Trustees | etrust". www.etrust.org.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  15. ^ "Association Established To Give Black and Minority Ethnic People Access to Opportunities in STEM Celebrates 10th Anniversary in London". Ariatu Public Relations. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  16. ^ "#9PercentIsNotEnough Conference - IET Events". events.theiet.org. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  17. ^ "About Us - Association For BME Engineers (AFBE-UK)". afbe.org.uk. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  18. ^ a b "AFBE-UK Scotland | AFBE-UK Scotland". www.afbescotland.org. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  19. ^ "Vince Cable to speak on Engineering Infrastructure in the UK". PRLog. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  20. ^ AFBE UK (4 August 2012), Making Engineering Hot 2012 Careers Day.mov, retrieved 20 January 2018
  21. ^ AFBE UK (1 August 2016), AFBE-UK's Transition in London, retrieved 20 January 2018
  22. ^ Tideway. "Transition - Tideway helps redress the balance of our industry workforce - Tideway | Reconnecting London with the River Thames". Tideway. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
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