Speakers

Jo da Silva
Director
Arup

Jo da Silva is a Director and leads Arup International Development which specialises in sustainable development in low income countries particularly in urban environments.

Jo originally joined Arup having studied engineering at Cambridge University.  She has combined a career at Arup, focussed on building design, urban re-generation and sustainable development with active involvement in humanitarian relief and international development.  She has particular expertise in shelter-housing, urban environments and disaster risk reduction including climate change adaptation.

As a structural/civil engineer has worked on a wide variety of technical projects both in the UK and overseas which have won major awards: Chek Lap Kok Airport, Osaka Museum, National Portrait Gallery, Royal Geographical Society, Ideas Stores, Surestart nursery Mitcham.

She has been a RedR-IHE Member since 1991, and has provided expertise in post-disaster situations including the Rwandan genocide (1994), and as Senior Shelter Co-ordinator for UNHCR in Sri Lanka post-tsunami (2005). 

She has considerable project management experience, and proven leadership skills. This includes: project/programme monitoring review, stakeholder consultation, assessment, evaluation and reporting; people and cost management; liaison with local and national government, funding bodies and key stakeholders.

Jo has extensive overseas experience, and has lived and worked in India, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Germany, Tanzania. She has travelled extensively in the India sub-continent, South-East Asia,  Middle East, Central Asia and Europe.