With a background in urban planning, geography, political science and film, Mark is the author of major contributions to disciplinary, inter-disciplinary, methodological and outreach fields in the academy, linking social science to science and health, new technology to user experiences, the visual understanding of urban and regional change, and evidence-based policy. He has written extensively on these issues, including his seminal contributions through his books The Planning Polity, Spatial Planning and Governance, Urban Reflections, The European Dimension of British Planning, Planning Futures, and Urban and Regional Planning (with Sir Peter Hall, now in its sixth edition). In total, he has produced 17 books and 80 international journal papers, won £25m in research income, levered in £65m for university initiatives, and supervised successfully 30 PhD students. He is currently writing about urban and regional futures, urban open innovation, digital planning engagement, and the role of higher education in the region.

He was the founding Director of Newcastle City Futures, a successful civic ideas factory housed at Newcastle University 2014-19 linking research to societal & business needs that generated collaborative & innovative ideas for all sectors across the city and partnered 200 organisations. It levered in £33m for partners, shaped 40 urban and regional innovation projects, & engaged over 155k people in urban change debates. 

He is committed to knowledge exchange, communicating academic ideas to broader audiences including governments, businesses and public bodies. He has 25 years of film and television experience including working on the BBC series Unbuilt Britain, Britain from Above, and The Planners, and Channel News Asia’s Perspectives.