Professor Martin Evans, Executive Dean in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health, has been made an honorary fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (RGS).
As part of the Society’s prestigious annual medals and awards, Martin has been honoured in recognition of his service to geography.
The award acknowledges his outstanding contribution to the field of geography through his research on peatlands and his contribution to disciplinary leadership.
Martin joins a prestigious list of recipients of RGS awards that includes Sir David Attenborough, Joanna Lumley, Neil Armstrong and Charles Darwin.
It is our great privilege to recognise such an outstanding group of scholars, researchers, explorers and conservationists for our 2026 medals and awards. This year’s recipients are recognised for deepening our understanding of our world, its people, and the processes that shape it. We celebrate their contribution to geographical science and we know that such recognition inspires further achievement and sparks curiosity.
In a rapidly changing world the role of geography and geographers in understanding and mitigating global challenges has never been more important. The RGS plays a critical role in supporting these endeavours and so it is a huge honour to receive this award from the society.
Martin’s research focuses on the geomorphology of peatland landscapes and their role in the carbon cycle.
His work examines peatland erosion and restoration, exploring how these processes influence ecosystem functions such as carbon sequestration, flood mitigation and pollutant fluxes.
He has worked with peatland practitioners and policy makers to design landscape experiments which evidence the impact of the widespread restoration of peatlands being undertaken across the UK.
Martin has made significant contributions to disciplinary leadership including Chairing the Conference of Heads of Geography In Higher Education Institutions and leading the A Level Content Advisory Board recommendations on the content of A Level geography.
His research excellence was recognised through his election as a Fellow of the British Society for Geomorphology in 2022.
He was also part of the team that received a 2024–25 Bezos Earth Fund Prize for Climate Innovation for work on selecting sphagnum characteristics to maximise methane oxidation.
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