2026 Shortlisted Nominee
Positive Role Model Award: LGBT
Elena Rodríguez Falcón is an internationally recognised higher‑education leader, engineer and change‑maker whose 25‑year career has advanced diversity, inclusion and social mobility in STEM. A Mexican‑born, openly gay mechanical engineer, she transformed the University of Sheffield through roles including Director of Women in Engineering before becoming Founding President of NMITE, the UK’s first new higher‑education institution in 40 years. Now Provost at Study Group, she provides global academic leadership of numerous centres across the world. A Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and Principal Fellow of Advance HE, Elena chairs the Engineering Development Trust and Industrial Cadets, doubling participation to 500,000. A long‑standing LGBT+ role model, she has led global campaigns including #ILookLikeAnLGBTEngineer and continues to champion inclusive, socially impactful education.