Distinguished environmental chemist Professor Peter Liss will serve as Interim Executive Chair of the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).

Professor Liss, Emeritus Professor at the University of East Anglia, will take up the role on 12 June.

Current NERC Executive Chair Professor Sir Duncan Wingham is standing down following 11 years in the role.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Chief Executive Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser said:
"Sir Duncan has provided exceptional leadership of NERC and played a key role in capturing the benefits of the creation of UKRI.

His achievements span major advances in our capability, including bringing the RRS Sir David Attenborough into service, significant cultural improvements in the sector such as leading work to deliver our Open Access approach, and leveraging expertise from across UKRI to lead our Building a Green Future strategic theme.

I would like to thank Sir Duncan, on behalf of the organisation and the community, for his many contributions to research and innovation in the UK and beyond."

Professor Liss will take up the Interim Executive Chair post until the appointment of a permanent replacement.

An open recruitment campaign is currently in process.

Specialising in biogeochemical interactions and the processes of air-sea gas exchange, Professor Liss is a Fellow of the Royal Society. He is a recipient of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s John Jeyes medal, has held a number of international roles and was made a CBE in 2008 for services to science.

He has served as a NERC council member, chaired the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme, and is a former member of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs’ Scientific Advisory Council and former chair of the European Research Council’s Earth System Science Advanced Grants Panel.

Dame Ottoline said:
"Professor Peter Liss is a hugely respected research leader and we are delighted to be able to benefit from his experience and expertise to provide strong direction during this period."

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