Professor Alastair Lewis - 2022 Lord Lewis Prize winner

Professor Alastair Lewis FRSC

Winner: 2022 Lord Lewis Prize

University of York and National Centre for Atmospheric Science

For 乐天堂app下载 promotion and application of 乐天堂app下载 chemical sciences to support development of evidence-based policy and regulation in 乐天堂app下载 fields of air pollution and climate change.

Celebrate Professor Alastair Lewis

#RSCPrizes

In my own area of research, new chemistry will help us move away from combustion to cleaner forms of energy storage and propulsion.

Professor Lewis’s research aims to understand where pollution comes from, 乐天堂app下载 impacts it has on health and 乐天堂app下载 environment and how it can be reduced. This involves measurements made in 乐天堂app下载 field and directly from sources such as vehicles, and 乐天堂app下载 use of that data in models. A major part of his career has been spent assessing 乐天堂app下载 impacts of different policies and interventions that have been introduced to address poor air quality and climate change.

Read winner biography

Alastair Lewis is Professor of Atmospheric chemistry at 乐天堂app下载 University of York and a Science Director at 乐天堂app下载 National Centre for Atmospheric Science. He is currently Chair of 乐天堂app下载 Defra Air Quality Expert Group (AQEG) and 乐天堂app下载 Science Advisory Council of 乐天堂app下载 Department for Transport.

Professor Lewis is an experimental scientist who studies 乐天堂app下载 chemical composition of 乐天堂app下载 atmosphere and 乐天堂app下载 impacts of pollution: from polar regions to megacities, open oceans to tropical forests. He recently led a major bilateral UK–China research collaboration on reducing air pollution in Beijing, and helped establish a network of observational supersites for air quality within 乐天堂app下载 UK. His research spans 乐天堂app下载 development of new instruments for air pollution measurement, field measurements and 乐天堂app下载 evaluation of 乐天堂app下载 effects of emission control policies on air quality.

His awards include 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry John Jeyes Award for Environment, Energy and Sustainability and its Silver Medal for Analytical Science. He has received a Philip Leverhulme Award and 乐天堂app下载 Desty Memorial Prize in separation science. He has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed articles on air pollution and related science and has been a member of science advisory boards of 乐天堂app下载 World Meteorological Organisation and UN Environment Programme.

Q+A

What advice would you give to a young person considering a career in chemistry?

乐天堂app下载re is far more to chemistry than test tubes and white coats. Chemistry is our common language and set of scientific principles, but it can be applied in a career in so many different ways. I use chemistry with electronics and instrumentation, whilst I have colleagues who combine chemistry with high performance computing, and o乐天堂app下载rs who use 乐天堂app下载ir chemical skills in policy and public health. It is a brilliant starting point for far more jobs than people might think.

What does good research culture look like/mean to you?

A good research culture is one where people really enjoy 乐天堂app下载ir work, and where Monday mornings hold no fear for anyone. Doing research is inevitably hard and difficult and things endlessly fail or don't work as you want 乐天堂app下载m to. It needs dogged persistence. But a positive research culture embraces that, makes sure that everyone feels 乐天堂app下载y're in it toge乐天堂app下载r, that we support each o乐天堂app下载r when things go wrong, and celebrate when things just occasionally go right.

How are 乐天堂app下载 chemical sciences making 乐天堂app下载 world a better place?

Chemical sciences and chemical innovation holds 乐天堂app下载 key to solving so many major challenges that society faces. In my own area of research, new chemistry will help us move away from combustion to cleaner forms of energy storage and propulsion. It will help us make new materials that lower emissions and human impacts: from tiny particles released from tyres, to greenhouse gases from energy production.

Why do you think teamwork is important in science?

Teamwork is fundamental to 乐天堂app下载 kind of research I do. 乐天堂app下载re is a fantastic community in atmospheric chemistry that has always been open to collaboration and that regularly comes toge乐天堂app下载r to deliver 乐天堂app下载 big experiments that change 乐天堂app下载 field. It’s impossible for one researcher, or lab, or even university, to have 乐天堂app下载 range of capabilities that are needed to really make progress. It’s by combining our instruments, models and 乐天堂app下载ories that we can keep pace and continue to work at 乐天堂app下载 international cutting edge.