Professor Arthur Petersen (DPA PhD MA MSc FIET FRSA FHEA) joined UCL STEaPP fulltime in September 2014 after more than 13 years’ work as scientific adviser on environment and infrastructure policy within the Dutch Government. Most recently he served as Chief Scientist of the PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (2011–2014).

Professor Petersen is also Visiting Fellow at Osaka University (2018) and Research Affiliate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (since 2009). He has been Adjunct Professor of Science and Environmental Public Policy at the VU University Amsterdam (2011–2016) and Professorial Fellow at the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment – RIVM (2016–2017), and he has been Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics and Political Science (2009–2014) and at UCL STEaPP (January–August 2014).

Professor Petersen studied physics and philosophy, obtained doctorate degrees in atmospheric sciences (Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Utrecht University, 1999) and philosophy of science (Doctor of Public Administration - DPA, VU University Amsterdam, 2006), and now also finds disciplinary homes in anthropology, political science and science & religion. Most of his research is about dealing with uncertainty and ignorance.

Professor Petersen has been a member of STEaPP's Leadership Team since he joined. In 2016–17 he was Acting Head of Department. At present, he is Deputy Head of Department (Research), until July 2018.