Sir Jim Smith
President, Zoological Society of London
Emeritus Scientist, Francis Crick Institute
Speaker's biography
Jim Smith is a globally recognised developmental biologist whose research has focused on inductive interactions in vertebrate development and on applying the principles of developmental biology to stem cell differentiation. Most recently, he and his colleagues have developed techniques to generate highly mature, left ventricle-like cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells.
Jim’s previous roles include Director of the Wellcome Trust/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute and Director of the MRC National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), where he oversaw its transition to the Francis Crick Institute. He has also served as Deputy CEO and Chief of Strategy at the Medical Research Council and as Director of Research and Group Leader at the Francis Crick Institute. Most recently, he held the roles of Director of Science and Director of Research Programmes at Wellcome, where he was instrumental in establishing Wellcome’s science strategy.
Professor Smith has had a distinguished career in scientific research. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1993, a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 1998, and a member of Academia Europaea in 2000. Among his honours, he was awarded the EMBO Medal in 1993 and the Waddington Medal in 2013. In recognition of his contributions, Professor Smith was knighted in the 2017 Queen’s New Year Honours list.
Two years ago, Jim joined the Council of the Zoological Society of London, where he now serves as President, striving to help shape a world where people and wildlife can thrive.