Sir Paul James Curran (born 17 May 1955) was president of

City, University of London City, University of London, is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, and a member institution of the federal University of London. It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute, and became a university when The City Univ ...

between August 2010 and June 2021. Sir Paul is now professor emeritus. Following a period of significant progress, City joined the University of London Federation in September 2016. He served previously as vice-chancellor of

Bournemouth University Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England, with its main campus situated in neighbouring Poole. The university was founded in 1992; however, the origins of its predecessor date back to the early 1900s. The univer ...

(2005–10) and deputy vice-chancellor at the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

, where he is currently a visiting professor. As a member of the senior management team at Southampton, progressing from head of geography to dean of science, Curran was credited with high-profile leadership as head of the

Winchester School of Art Winchester School of Art is the art school of the University of Southampton, situated 10 miles (14 km) north of Southampton in the city of Winchester near the south coast of England. History The Winchester School of Art was founded in 187 ...

, part of the

Biography

A former

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

research scientist and advisor to the

European Space Agency , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...

, Curran's research interests include investigations into global environmental change, in particular the movement of carbon between the atmosphere and forests. His award-winning work in Earth observation, involving the use of satellite sensors to monitor the environment at local to global scales, is widely published and he is the youngest recipient of the Remote Sensing Society's gold medal. He is chair of the MS Society, NHS National Joint Registry and NERC Advisory Committee on Scientific Leadership; non-executive director and trustee of the Universities Superannuation Scheme Ltd.; president o
the Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Society
and patron o
The Conversation UK
He was chair of the national Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration (DDRB), where his 2015 report on hospital doctors' contracts sparked controversy in a stated attempt to the move to seven-day-a-week healthcare services; founding chair of the board of trustees for

The Conversation UK ''The Conversation'' is a network of not-for-profit media outlets publishing news stories and research reports online, with accompanying expert opinion and analysis. Articles are written by academics and researchers under a free Creative Com ...

; Chair of the

Universities and Colleges Employers Association The Universities and Colleges Employers' Association (UCEA) is the employers' association for universities and colleges of higher education (HE) in the United Kingdom. It represents universities and HE colleges in national negotiations with the f ...

(UCEA) Board and led the employers' negotiating team in the national pay negotiations; a Member of the

Natural Environment Research Council The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) is a British research council that supports research, training and knowledge transfer activities in the environmental sciences. History NERC began in 1965 when several environmental (mainly geogr ...

(NERC) and its remuneration committee and the chair of its Audit & Risk Assurance Committee; the chair of the

Higher Education Funding Council for England The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engla ...

(HEFCE), Higher Education Workforce Steering Group; a Member of the

Quality Assurance Agency The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) is the independent body that checks on standards and quality in UK higher education. It conducts quality assessment reviews, develops reference points and guidance for providers, and condu ...

(QAA) Board and its Remuneration and Audit Committees; a member of the board of trustees fo
London Higher
and a member of Universities UK and its Research Policy and Innovation & Growth Policy Committees. Curran received a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

from the

University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...

in 1976, an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from the

in 1998 and

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

and

DSc DSC may refer to: Academia * Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) * District Selection Committee, an entrance exam in India * Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine Educational institutions * Dalton State Col ...

degrees from the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

in 1979 and 1991 respectively. He is a Chartered Geographer and a Fellow of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Society
and

Chartered Management Institute The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) is a professional institution for management based in the United Kingdom. The major membership classes are ''Member'', ''Fellow'' - for those with significant expertise - and ''Companion'' - the most sen ...

. His PhD was followed by academic appointments at the universities of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

and

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

before moving to

NASA Ames Research Center The Ames Research Center (ARC), also known as NASA Ames, is a major NASA research center at Moffett Federal Airfield in California's Silicon Valley. It was founded in 1939 as the second National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) laborat ...

in 1988. He held established chairs in physical geography at the

University of Wales, Swansea , former_names=University College of Swansea, University of Wales Swansea , motto= cy, Gweddw crefft heb ei dawn , mottoeng="Technical skill is bereft without culture" , established=1920 – University College of Swansea 1996 – University of Wa ...

, from 1990 and the

from 1993.

Personal life

Curran is married, with one daughter. His leisure interests include boating and middle-distance running.

Honours

In 2007, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

approved the award of the

Patron's Medal The Royal Geographical Society's Gold Medal consists of two separate awards: the Founder's Medal 1830 and the Patron's Medal 1838. Together they form the most prestigious of the society's awards. They are given for "the encouragement and promoti ...

of the

for his 'international development of geographical science through remote sensing and Earth observation'. Curran holds honorary doctorates from Grand École ESCP, Paris (2017), and Peter the Great University St Petersburg, Russia (2019), and is a Freeman of the City of London (2017). Curran was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

in the

2016 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2016 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

for services to higher education.

Select works

*Phenology of Vegetation (2011) *Evaluation of

Envisat Envisat ("Environmental Satellite") is a large inactive Earth-observing satellite which is still in orbit and now considered space debris. Operated by the European Space Agency (ESA), it was the world's largest civilian Earth observation satell ...

(2011) *Validating the MERIS (2010) *Indian Ocean Tsunami (2007) *Landcover Classification (2007) *Evaluation of the MERIS (2007) *Relating SAR Image Texture (2005) *The MERIS Terrestrial Chlorophyll Index (2004) *A Comparison of Texture Measures (2004) *The Slope of the Playing Field (1994)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curran, Paul Living people 1955 births British geographers People associated with Bournemouth University Place of birth missing (living people) Presidents of City, University of London Academics of the University of Southampton NASA people Alumni of the University of Sheffield Alumni of the University of Southampton Alumni of the University of Bristol Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Academics of the University of Reading Academics of the University of Sheffield Knights Bachelor Recipients of the Royal Geographical Society Patron's Medal