Appointed 2020. Dr Robert Easton is a former Partner of Carlyle, the global alternative asset management company. During his 19 years at the firm he performed a number of roles as an investment professional, being a fund head in buyout and technology investing, while serving on multiple portfolio company boards. Robert is a past Chairman of the British Venture Capital Association and a serial investor in technology driven, small and start-up businesses. He has had a variety of engagements with the higher education sector at Oxford University, where until recently he was a Pro-Vice-Chancellor, as well as at Imperial College. In addition to being a Trustee of CRUK, Robert is a Fellow of the British Heart Foundation and a Trustee of the Young Vic Theatre and funds causes in science, sport, music, higher education, conservation and sub-Saharan Africa.