High achievers are to be presented with honorary degrees by the University of Warwick
to recognise the importance of their work.

The degrees will be presented between Wednesday and Friday, January 22-24, during the institutions winter degree ceremonies.

Among
the recipients will be a renowned choreographer, a respected academic, an expert in psychology, a medical pioneer and a politican.

Dance
theatre company Motionhouse’s artistic director Kevin Finnan will become an honorary doctor of letters for his work creating, either alone
or in collaboration with his co-founding director Louise Richards, each
of the company’s major touring productions.

He has a history of creating dance spectacles including the acclaimed Machine Dance for JCB diggers and dancers.

In 2012 he was choreographer and movement director for the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

That
same year, he created The Voyage for the London 2012 Festival – an enormous outdoor performance event performed on a life size ship in the centre of Birmingham and made in collaboration with Legs On The Wall from Australia.

Dr John Hood, former vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford and vice chancellor of the University of Auckland, will become and honorary doctor of laws for his contributions to the world of business and academia.

Professor George Loewenstein is set to become an honorary doctor of science and is the professor of economics and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University. He is also one of the founders of the field of behavioural economics and more recently of the field of neuroeconomics.

Loewenstein’s research focuses on applications of psychology to economics.

Dr
Oliver Sacks, professor of neurology at NYU School of Medicine and a Visiting Professor at the University of Warwick, will become an honorary
doctor of science.

His essays and books about people living with various neurological conditions have earned numerous awards and inspired millions of readers around the world.

Lord Mike Whitby is a Conservative peer and former leader of Birmingham City Council, a post he held from June 2004 to May 2012. He is set to become an honorary doctor of laws for his contribution to developing business in the Midlands and further afield.