Sir John Beddington | |
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| Born | John Rex Beddington (1945-10-13)13 October 1945 (age 79)[2] |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | London School of Economics (undergraduate) University of Edinburgh (postgraduate) |
| Known for | Sustainable management ofrenewable resources[citation needed] Government Chief Scientific Adviser (2008–2013) |
| Spouses | |
| Awards | Fellow of the Royal Society (2001) Knight Bachelor (2010) Order of St Michael and St George (2004) HonoraryFREng[1] (2012)[2] |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Population biology |
| Institutions | Oxford Martin School Imperial College London University of York University of Edinburgh |
| Thesis | The exploitation of red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in Scotland. |
| Website | oxfordmartin |
Sir John Rex Beddington (born 13 October 1945)[2] is a British population biologist and Senior Adviser at theOxford Martin School, and was previously Professor of Applied Population Biology atImperial College London, and the UKGovernment Chief Scientific Adviser from 2008 until 2013.[3][4][5]
Beddington was educated atMonmouth School in south-east Wales, close to the English border.[6] He then attended theLondon School of Economics, gaining aBSc degree in economics in 1967, and later anMSc degree in 1968.[7] In 1973 he was awarded aPhD degree from theUniversity of Edinburgh.[8]
Beddington's research applies biology and economics to thesustainable management ofnatural resources.[9]
From 1968 to 1971 Beddington was a research assistant at the University of Edinburgh. From 1971 to 1984 he was a lecturer in population biology at theUniversity of York.[2]
Beddington was part of theOxford Martin School from May 2013 until 2018. He served as the senior advisor to ProfessorIan Goldin, the School's Director. The Oxford Martin School is made up of a community of more than 200 researchers, working to address the most pressing global challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.
Beddington joined Imperial in 1984, was promoted toReader in 1987[10] and was appointed Professor of Applied Population Biology there in 1991.
Beddington has been a specialist in the economics and biology of sustainable management of renewable resources, and has previously advised UK ministers on scientific and environmental issues. He has chaired theDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' science advisory panel and the Defence Scientific Advisory Committee, and is a member of the Natural Environmental Research Council.[11] He has also advised the European Commission and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation.
On 1 October 2007, it was announced by the Prime MinisterGordon Brown that Beddington would succeed Professor SirDavid King as theChief Scientific Adviser to the UK Government with effect from 1 January 2008.[12] His annual remuneration for this role was £165,000.[13] Beddington was closely involved in helping the British government formulate its response to theFukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster,[14] theeruptions of Icelandic volcanoes andash dieback disease in the UK.[5][15]In March 2009 Beddington addressed theSustainable Development UK conference warning that the world faced a "perfect storm" involving food shortages, scarce water and insufficient energy resources. These, he explained, would threaten to led topublic unrest andterritorial disputes. Mass migration from the worst-affected regions would occur as people flee for more sustainable regions.[16] "We head into a perfect storm in 2030, because all of these things are operating on the same time frame," he argued.[16] In June 2023 a group of climate scientists argued that they saw this as "prescient".[17]
In April 2013 Beddington was succeeded byMark Walport.[18][19]
Professor Beddington was awarded the Heidelberg Award for Environmental Excellence in June 1997, was elected aFellow of the Royal Society in 2001[20] and was appointedCompanion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004, in recognition of his services to fisheries science and management.[21] He was also appointed a HonoraryFellow[1] of theRoyal Academy of Engineering[1] in 2012 and was elected a Fellow of theRoyal Society of Edinburgh[22] in 2011.
In July 2014, he was recognised by the Government of Japan for his contributions to strengthening the co-operation between Japan and the UK in the areas of science and technology.[23]
Beddington wasknighted in the 2010 Birthday Honours.[24] He was married to Sarah West from 1968 until their divorce in 1972. They have one son. In 1973, he married social policy professorSally Baldwin. They divorced in 1979, and have one daughter, Emma Beddington, journalist atThe Guardian. He married his current spouse, Caroline Hiller, in 1990.[2]
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Media related toJohn Beddington at Wikimedia Commons| Government offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Government Chief Scientific Adviser 2008–2013 | Succeeded by |
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