This panel brings together perspectives from academia, industry and policy to examine how green industrial policies can deliver sustainable growth in an increasingly uncertain global environment. Panellists will explore the role of innovation and international linkages, particularly through global value chains, in achieving net zero, and unpack why creating everything 'at home' may have unintended economic and environmental consequences. They will discuss current evidence on sustainable growth opportunities, including the interactions between net zero and broader technological change, and how businesses are responding to evolving policy landscapes.

Speakers
The Rt Hon Greg Clark is Executive Chair of the University of Warwick’s Innovation District (and Chair of WMG – the Warwick Manufacturing Group). Greg served for 19 years as a Member of Parliament, before stepping down in 2024. He was a senior minister for nearly 10 years, including serving in the UK Cabinet as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Minister for Science and Universities, and previously as Minister for Cities and Financial Secretary to the Treasury. Greg read economics at Cambridge University before earning his PhD from the London School of Economics.

Oliver Harman is a spatial economist and economic geographer at LSE's Department of Geography and Environment. His research focuses on urbanisation, global value chains and regional development.

Louise Hellem is Chief Economist at the CBI and a member of its Executive Committee. She shapes the CBI's overall view on economic and fiscal policy, leads discussions with senior politicians and policymakers, and oversees CBI Economics, the organisation's economic consultancy.

Professor Anna Valero is Director of the Growth Programme, Professor in Practice at the Centre for Economic Performance and Deputy Director of the Programme on Innovation and Diffusion (POID), all at LSE. Her research focuses on sustainable growth, innovation diffusion, and industrial strategy. She currently serves as Industrial Strategy Adviser to Chancellor Rachel Reeves, having previously served as a member of the Council of Economic Advisers. She is a member of the Royal Economic Society Council.

Chair
Riccardo Crescenzi is Professor of Economic Geography at LSE and a leading expert on foreign direct investment, global value chains and regional development. 

More about this event
This event is part of the LSE Festival: How to save the planet running from Monday 15 to Saturday 20 June 2026. This year's Festival explores how existential threats including the climate crisis, conflict and AI are affecting all parts of the world, transforming the way and where we live, and how our societies function. With a series of events asking what can we be doing to save the Earth, its people and environment? Booking for all Festival events will open on Monday 18 May.