Janet Downie, Hazina Alladin and Róisín Ní Chatháin honoured.
Edinburgh Napier is delighted to announce the recipients of the 2021 Alumnus of the Year, Young Alumnus of the Year and Highly Commended awards.
These annual awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of the University’s global community and showcase the value and impact of their Edinburgh Napier education.
The Edinburgh Napier community were asked to nominate alumni who have shown excellence and distinction in their personal or professional lives and who have made a positive contribution to the University, their community and profession.
The winners were selected by an award panel chaired by Geoffrey H. Day, Director of People and Services (Interim) & Director of Marketing and External Relations, Edinburgh Napier University.
In recognition of the high-quality pool of nominations received this year, the panel also gave out a special Highly Commended award.
Meet this year’s winners:
Alumnus of the Year 2021 - Janet Downie
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Janet graduated in 1994 with a BSc (Hons) in Biological Sciences. She is the Chief Executive Officer at Roslin Cell Therapies Ltd (RoslinCT), an Edinburgh-based leading UK Cell Therapy Contract Development and Manufacturing Organisation.
The Alumni of the Year Award selection panel commented:
"Janet has had a very successful and accomplished career in the life sciences sector. She is an innovative business leader who is an inspiration to Edinburgh Napier students and alumni. As CEO of RoslinCT, Janet led the recent formation of a consortium, which includes Edinburgh Napier’s School of Applied Sciences (SAS), for the new Advanced Therapies Skills Training Network. This is tremendous news for Edinburgh Napier and all our SAS life sciences students."
Read Janet's career story
Young Alumnus of the Year 2021 – Hazina Alladin
Hazina graduated in 2020 with a BA with Distinction in Business and Enterprise. She currently works at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as a Mission Support Specialist for Community Partnerships within their Human Trafficking Task Force.
The Alumni of the Year Award selection panel commented:
"During her studies, Hazina demonstrated exceptional resilience, determination and strength of character to go on to graduate despite personal tragedy and loss. She is a proactive and innovative individual who has dedicated her career and volunteering activities to date to support those affected by human trafficking. We look forward to following and supporting her career."
Read Hazina's career story
Highly Commended 2021 - Róisín Ní Chatháin
Róisín graduated in 2010 with a BSc (Hons) in Architectural Technology. She is a Chartered Architectural Technologist and Director at BPTW, a London-based award-winning architecture and planning practice.
The Alumni of the Year Award selection panel commented:
"Róisín is a talented architectural technologist who has shown dedication to her profession and to furthering the careers of the next generation of architectural technologists. Róisín is involved in mentoring, she set up a graduate and placement programme at BPTW and returns to ENU to speak to final year architectural technology students about her career and to provide industry insights."
Read Róisín's career story