Kavanagh appointed ULI Europe chair

Anne Kavanagh, the former chief executive of residential and mixed-use developer Telford Homes, has been appointed as chair of industry body ULI Europe. Kavanagh succeeds Lars Huber, chief executive of Hines Europe. She will serve on a voluntary basis for a two-year term which officially began on 1 July. Kavanagh recently announced her retirement as chief executive of Telford Homes, which is part of Trammell Crow, and stepped down on 28 June. She plans to focus primarily on her non-executive industry roles, including as ULI Europe Chair, and will continue her involvement with Telford Homes as a senior advisor. Kavanagh has been an active member of ULI since 2001, serving on its global board of directors since 2019 and as a global governing trustee since 2011. She is also a member of the European Living Concepts Council. She previously served as the UK national council chair. ULI Global Chair, Diane Hoskins, global co-chair of Gensler, said: “I know that Anne is passionate about addressing many of the major challenges that our industry faces and has an impressive track record for driving areas such as diversity and sustainability. “Her commitment to ULI and to advancing our mission is remarkable, and we’re confident she can only build upon the great legacy left by Lars Huber during his leadership of ULI Europe over the last two years.” Kavanagh has identified several priorities that will guide her tenure as ULI Europe chair. She said: “We’re at a point in the industry where we are navigating an extremely complex environment, and looking to the near future we are going to see changes occur at a scale and a pace that we have never seen in this generation. “The geopolitical landscape is more volatile and complex than it has been in decades, with worldwide events and political trends impacting the decisions we will make and are making as an industry.” Kavanagh identified climate and biodiversity change, as well as AI, as major issues facing the sector. She said: “I believe that ULI is extremely well positioned to play a key leadership role in responding to these ever more difficult issues that require even greater collaboration and partnership, and it is very well positioned to encourage the innovation and change that is required by our industry.” Photo supplied by ULI