Professor Alice Owen (Sustainability Research Institute, University of Leeds), Felix Kumi-Ampofo (West Yorkshire Combined Authority) and Professor Gary Dymski (Leeds University Business School) discuss what it really means for a regional economy to be successful, looking beyond headline growth figures to questions of inclusion and sustainability. Drawing on UK and US experience, they discuss devolution, fiscal powers, and the challenges of aligning national policy with local priorities in shaping economies fit for the future.

Visit the MetroCentral Capacity for Growth project webpage.

Read the briefing - “Governance for inclusive economic growth in UK cities.”

The project discussed in this episode is funded by the UK Innovation Caucus.

This podcast episode was recorded remotely on 7 May 2026. If you would like to get in touch regarding this podcast, please contact research.lubs@leeds.ac.uk. A transcript of this episode is available.

Speaker bios:

Professor Alice Owen is Director of Leeds’ Sustainability Research Institute, the largest group of sustainability researchers in the UK. She brings her experience across policy and business to her research which focuses on how to delivery sustainable construction, and place-based approaches to sustainability.

Felix Kumi-Ampofo is Director of Inclusive Economy, Skills, and Culture at the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. Felix has over 25 years of experience in policy-making and delivery. Prior to his current role at the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, Felix’s career had spanned both the public and private sectors including academia, local government, regional development, and international consultancy.

Professor Gary Dymski is Professor of Applied Economics at Leeds University Business School. He has participated in national projects about how to rebuild macroeconomics and about the productivity paradox in the UK, and is currently the principal investigator of the URKI-funded Yorkshire Policy Innovation Partnership.

Our special guest this episode is Tom Dickinson, founder of Tom's Talks. The episode centres around Tom's personal experience of losing his brother to suicide and how that shaped the work he does today, speaking in schools and workplaces about mental health and wellbeing. In this episode, we explore the intersections between suicide, masculinity, and work and reflect on what organisations can learn in supporting mental health and preventing harm.

This episode was recorded on 18 March 2026. A transcript of the episode is available. If you would like to get in touch regarding the episode or podcast, email research.lubs@leeds.ac.uk. Visit the podcast webpage for further information.

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About the speakers:

Tom is the founder of Toms Talks, a mental health initiative focused on breaking the stigma around suicide and men’s mental health. Following the loss of his brother to suicide, Tom now works across schools and organisations, delivering powerful talks that combine lived experience with practical insights. He has built a large online following of nearly 250,000 on TikTok and has inspired millions through his content, helping to open up conversations around mental health.

Dr Sanjay Popat is a Chartered Organisational Psychologist and Postdoctoral Research Fellow specialising in occupational stress, well-being and mental health. His work focuses on how these phenomena occur over time and how time might influence whether we adapt to stressors or reach a breaking point.

Tony Morgan and Dr Lena Jaspersen discuss experiential and team-based learning in this episode, sharing insights from both their classroom practice and their pedagogical research. They discuss the diverge-converge approach, how to include students with varying levels of confidence, language proficiency or neurodiversity, and their approach to building resilience in students. In this episode, they also introduce their “Learning in Tandem” framework, offering practical guidance for educators who wish to design meaningful, inclusive, and research-informed experiential learning.

This podcast episode was recorded remotely in March 2026. If you would like to get in touch regarding this podcast, please contact research.lubs@leeds.ac.uk. A transcript of this episode is available.

Useful resources:

• LITE Research Project
• Diverging and Converging for Team-Based Learning
• Design Thinking for Student Projects book
• Learning in Tandem framework

About the speakers:

Lena Jaspersen is a Lecturer in Innovation and Qualitative Research Methods at Leeds University Business School. Her expertise includes interdisciplinary teaching and research in technology and social innovation, organization theory, global development, cross-sector partnerships, sustainability research, and qualitative research methods. Lena is co-author of the bestselling textbook ‘Management and Business Research’ and co-author, with Tony, of ‘Design Thinking for Student Projects’, a textbook focused on experiential learning and employability skills development.

Tony Morgan (FHEA) is an Associate Professor in Innovation Management Practice at the University of Leeds in the UK, where he teaches interdisciplinary and team-based innovation modules at Undergraduate, Masters and MBA levels. He previously held senior innovation and technology roles at IBM. Research areas include how students learn when working in diverse and interdisciplinary teams. Tony is the author of multiple books, and co-author, with Lena, of ‘Design Thinking for Student Projects’.