Congress
What is Congress?
Our motto: Be the voice of the membership. Make a difference.
Congress was introduced in 2018 in reference to good practice elsewhere and outcomes of consultation and engagement with members. Congress is the member advisory body of the Institution comprising up to 41 volunteer members elected by their peers. It acts as a sounding board and advises the Board of Trustees on matters of interest to IChemE and its members. This includes reviewing and advising on changes to the governance and operation of IChemE, as well as providing the members’ view to the Institution on strategic initiatives.
The purpose and duties of Congress can be found in the Terms of Reference. Find out more about how Congress works.
Who can join?
All members can stand for election to Congress. Congress consists of two electoral colleges; one that elects on a geographical basis (Regional College) and one that reflects membership grades from student to Fellow (Functional College). The term in office for all Congress members is three years, renewable to a maximum of six consecutive years after which there shall be at least a two-year gap before a further term can be served. Read more about the role requirements.
Why join Congress?
There are many benefits of joining Congress. In this helpful video the current Congress Chair, Elizabeth Salter, explains all.
If you are still not convinced about joining, you can find out what other members of Congress had to say in this article 'What it means to be part of Congress'.
How to apply
Congress elections happen annually. Vacant seats will be announced in January with nominations opening in February. New members are appointed at the Annual General Meeting. If you would like further information about how to apply please visit the Congress election page.
Congress members
View our volunteer group structure.
Elizabeth Salter
Chair
Elizabeth was elected to Congress in June 2020 as a representative for UK South East.
Jiaping Paul Chen
Representative for Singapore
Jiaping Paul Chen was elected to Congress in June 2024 as a representative for Singapore.
Padraig Collins
Representative for Rest of World
Padraig was elected to Congress in June 2021 as a representative for Rest of World.
Michael Olawale Daramola
Representative for South Africa
Michael was elected to Congress in June 2024 as a representative for South Africa.
Francesco Del Giudice
Chartered Member Representative
Francesco was elected to Congress in June 2021 as a Chartered Member representative.
John Gunner
Fellow Representative
John was elected to Congress in June 2023 as a Fellow representative
Wadoud Hazineh
Representative for the UK North West and North Wales
Wadoud was elected to Congress in June 2023 as a representative for the UK North West and North Wales
Stephanie Houghton
Representative for UK South Wales
Stephanie was elected to Congress in June 2020 as a representative for UK South Wales.
Earl Hutchinson
Representative for UK Midlands
Earl was elected to Congress in June 2020 as a representative for UK Midlands.
Lisa Julian
Representative for New Zealand
Lisa was elected to Congress in June 2022 as a representative for New Zealand.
Fiona McIntosh
Early Career Representative
Fiona was elected to Congress in June 2021 as a Early Career representative.
Saiful Anuar B M Mokhtar
Representative for Malaysia
Saiful Anuar B M Mokhtar was elected to Congress in June 2023 as a representative for Malaysia
Chris Park
Representative for UK South East
Chris was elected to Congress in June 2024 as a representative for UK South East.
James Shorthouse
Representative for Australia
James was elected to Congress in June 2021 as a representative for Australia.
Dhruv Singh
Early Career Representative
Dhruv is elected to Congress as a Early Career representative.
Matthew Swatton
Fellow Representative
Matthew was elected to Congress in June 2022 as a Fellow representative.
Alina Tony
Student Member Representative
Alina was elected to Congress in June 2024 as a Student Member representative.
Jonathan Vincent
Early Career Representative
Jonathan was elected to Congress in June 2024 as a Early Career representative.
Iftikhar Ul Haq
Chartered Member Representative
Iftikhar Ul Haq was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a Chartered Member representative.
Rosa Vidal Vazquez
Associate Member Representative
Rosa was elected to Congress in June 2025 as an Associate Member representative.
Haji Alhaji Mohammed
Chartered Member Representative
Haji Alhaji Mohammed was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a Chartered Member representative.
Defne Ertugrul
Student Member Representative
Defne was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a Student Member representative.
Daxin Pan
Americas Representative
Daxin was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a representative for the Americas.
Hong Wai Onn
Representative of Malaysia
Hong Wai Onn was elected to Congress in June 2025.
Adai Onazi
Representative of Rest of the World
Adai was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a representative of Rest of the World.
Eleni Routoula
Representative of UK, North East
Eleni was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a representative of the UK, North East.
Nirupam Biswas
Representative of all Ireland
Nirupam was elected to Congress in June 2025 as a representative of all of Ireland.