Speaker biographies

Catriona Stewart

Conference Chair

Catriona Stewart is a journalist, broadcaster and commentator, taking an in-depth look at a range of issues from politics and crime to social affairs and current events.

She was previously Chief Reporter for the Glasgow Times where she built a reputation as a cycling advocate over many years supporting and advocating for campaigns to make the city more cycle friendly. Catriona also teaches journalism at the University of Glasgow, is a regular contributor on radio, television and podcasts, Vice-Chair of Women in Journalism Scotland, and is a Children’s Panel member.

Deborah Paton

Head of Transport Planning and Delivery at Glasgow City Council

Deborah Paton is a professional transport planner with some 25 years of experience across local government and private consultancy. As Head of Transport Planning and Delivery at Glasgow City Council, she leads teams working on the development of transport policy and liveable neighbourhoods, delivery of sustainable transport infrastructure including active travel, operation of sustainable transport schemes & delivery of travel behaviour change initiatives.

Fiona Hyslop MSP

Cabinet Secretary for Transport

Fiona Hyslop MSP is Cabinet Secretary for Transport. Elected in the first session of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, she had been returned as the Constituency MSP for Linlithgow since 2011. Previously appointed as Cabinet Secretary for Education & Lifelong Learning from 2007-2009, and Culture Secretary from 2009-2020, she has also served as Deputy Convenor of the Scottish Parliament’s Economy and Fair Work Committee, and as a member of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee.

Kate Cairns

Speaker, Trainer, CLOCS Ambassador

Kate Cairns is a multi-award-winning agent of change, Chartered Civil Engineer, Chartered Environmentalist, and Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). 

Following a personal tragedy Kate has worked for over a decade to inspire and collaborate with an enormous range of stakeholders resulting in change to legislation, policy and standards at local, national and European level to make our streets safer for active travelers. She has led the instigation and evolution of a ‘world-first’ industry standard (CLOCS), to reduce the risk of construction vehicles, the biggest deterrent to cyclists.

Kate has served as a County Councillor in Northumberland, embedding CLOCS into the Council procurement policy and sitting on the first ever Cycling and Walking Committee of the Council to produce their strategy Gearing Up. She has worked in academia as a Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor at Durham University (Embedding Sustainability and Inclusion into Engineering); in the third sector serving as trustee of RoadPeace, the national charity for road crash victims; and she chairs the Institution of Civil Engineers Fairness Inclusion & Respect Committee. Kate has featured on national TV, radio, broadsheets, and in trade press and podcasts.

Adrien Sartre

Political Advisor to the Deputy Mayor of Paris

Adrien Sartre holds a Master's degree in Physics, Energy and the Environment, followed by a Master's in Public Policy. He is an environmental activist who has worked on several Green Party election campaigns. Adrien Sartre is now advisor to David Belliard, the Deputy Mayor of Paris for the transformation of public space, transport, mobility. In this position, he is in charge of pedestrian, bicycle and traffic policies for the City of Paris. He also teaches local public policies at Sciences Po.

Kevin Argue

Sustainable Transport Group Manager at Glasgow City Council

Kevin Argue is a transport professional with over 17 years of experience in local government, where he has successfully overseen a wide range of multimillion-pound strategic transport and infrastructure projects across East Dunbartonshire, Stirling, and Glasgow.

In his current role as Sustainable Transport Group Manager at Glasgow City Council, Kevin leads an extensive portfolio of significant active travel and place-focused initiatives. Notable projects under his management include Connecting Woodside, Connecting Battlefield, Connecting Yorkhill and Kelvingrove, South City Way, and East City Way. He also oversees Glasgow’s successful bikeshare and residential secure cycle parking programmes.

Cross-party panel

Sarah Boyack MSP

Sarah Boyack is the Scottish Labour MSP for Lothian Region. Having served in the Scottish Parliament since 1999, Sarah is Deputy Convenor of the Cross-Party Group on Sustainable Transport, and is Scottish Labour’s spokesperson on Energy, Just Transition and Net Zero.

Councillor Sanne Dijkstra-Downie

Sanne Dijkstra-Downie is Liberal Democrat councillor for the Forth ward in City of Edinburgh Council and is a member of the council’s Transport and Environment Committee and Policy and Sustainability Committee. Elected in 2022, Sanne grew up in the Netherlands and settled in Scotland after studying at the University of Edinburgh.

Councillor Angus Millar

Angus Millar is SNP councillor for Anderston/City/Yorkhill ward in Glasgow City Council, and the city’s Convenor for Climate, Glasgow Green Deal, Transport and City Centre Recovery. In this role, he leads on the city's journey to Net Zero, promoting sustainability and developing the city's transport strategies.

Mark Ruskell MSP

Mark Ruskell is the Scottish Greens MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife. Party spokesperson for Climate, Energy, Environment Food and Farming, he is also a member of the Scottish Parliament’s Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee. Mark was first elected in 2003, then again in 2016 and 2021. He has served as a local councillor in Stirling and has worked in the renewables sector.

Graham Simpson MSP

Graham Simpson is the Scottish Conservative MSP for Central Scotland Region. Graham is convenor of the Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on Sustainable Transport and Scottish Conservative deputy spokesperson on Energy, Net Zero and Transport. He has served in the Scottish Parliament since 2016.