Event Schedule

The researcher who helped support the TV show 'Lie to Me' and has trained FBI agents and other high-stakes professionals. Engaging individuals in conversation and interviews whilst keeping the 'noise' from contaminating the quality of the interaction.

For decades scientists have argued whether a basic set of emotions are hardwired by evolution, or are not fixed at all, but constructed in the moment from bodily signals, memories, and the words our culture gives us. We believe both sides hold genuine truths, and the next chapter of emotion science - and of emotional intelligence in practice - will be written by those willing to bring them together. We are delighted to be working with Professor Schiller in this quest. Daniela is Professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, and is one of the most influential figures in affective neuroscience today. Daniela's keynote brings the cutting edge of integrative affective neuroscience to Manchester with 'Human Affectome' - a framework that helps us move the debate forward constructively - the type of conversation EI2026 was created to host.

World-leading researcher from the University of Chicago on how our gestures reveal thoughts we don't even know we have. How deaf children create language from nothing. Why gesture is a powerful tool for learning, teaching, interviewing, and leadership. Includes live demonstrations: audience experiments with gesture-speech mismatches.

Through real-world cases, delegates will learn about the importance of time, behavioural analysis, and emotional intelligence in criminal investigations. Beyond techniques and methods, the audience will understand the criminals, themselves, and their role in the investigation.

From prison cells to boardrooms — how does EI operate when the pressure is at its highest? Panellists share their most intense professional experiences and the EI skills that make the difference. Audience Q&A.

Consultant Forensic Psychologist and star of Discovery's 'Faking It: Tears of a Crime'. Kerry discusses one of EI's greatest misconceptions — that empathy is always a strength — and details her own 'rational compassion' journey. Drawing on work across prisons, forensic hospitals, and the criminal justice system, she explores how empathy can both help and hinder, and how individuals with 'Dark Side' personality traits may use EI skills strategically.

Open bar, Pizza and Networking. Informal evening to connect with fellow delegates and speakers. Live music, dancing and karaoke.

An interactive competition across the tables to get you in the mood.

Based on her published research and bestselling book on the Imposter Phenomenon. Why high-achievers doubt themselves and how EI provides the antidote. Practical strategies for psychological courage in the workplace. Includes individual reflection exercise and pair-share.

Four researchers debate the frontier of EI & BA. Topics: AI and emotion recognition, gesture and nonverbal intelligence, the next generation of EI assessment, forensic behaviour analysis, cultural differences, and what the science says about the future of human connection.

Dr Boris Altemeyer (Bangor University / EmotionIntell) joins Mark Kevings from e-conomic, whose MSc research has led him to explore AI's impact on critical thinking and emotional intelligence in the workplace, to ask what AI is doing to our teams - and our responsibility to change it. Facilitated by Dr Cliff Lansley.

The conference chair closes with a powerful synthesis of everything covered across 3 days.