Sir Alan Wilson is Professor of Urban and Regional Systems in the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis at University College London and is Chair of the Arts and Humanities Research Council. He is currently Chair of the Lead Expert Group for the Government Office for Science Foresight project on the Future of Cities and Chair of the Home Office Science Advisory Council. He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Leeds from 1991 to 2004, and Director-General for Higher Education in DfES from 2004 to 2006. Previous appointments include Assistant Director, Centre for Environmental Studies; Mathematical Adviser, Ministry of Transport; Research Officer, Institute of Economics and Statistics, Oxford University; and Scientific Officer, Rutherford Laboratory. He has held various non-executive appointments. He has been Chairman of Leeds School’s Commission, Chairman of the NHS Complaints Review Committee, a member of the Northern and Yorkshire Regional Health Authority, and Chair of the British Library Advisory Committee on Document Supply. From 1996-2002, he was on the Board of Universities UK and from 1998-2002, was Chair of the Research Policy Group (of Universities UK). From 2000-2004, he was a member of the Economic and Social Research Council and from 2000-2003, Chair of the Board of the Worldwide Universities Network. From 2007-2010, he was Chair of SCORE, the partnership project on science education, and Chair of the British Academy Steering Group on promotion of the arts and humanities and the social sciences. He was the Founding Editor of Environment and Planning A in 1969. He is a Fellow of both the British Academy and Royal Society.