Professor Alastair Lewis from the National Centre for Atmospheric Science and University of York has won the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Lord Lewis Prize.

Professor Lewis joins a prestigious list of past winners in the prize portfolio, and will receive £5,000 and a medal.

The Lord Lewis Prize is awarded for distinctive and distinguished chemical or scientific achievements, together with significant contributions to the development of science policy.

The award recognises Professor Lewis for the promotion and application of the chemical sciences to support development of evidence-based policy and regulation in the fields of air pollution and climate change.

“It’s an honour to receive the award,” says Professor Lewis.

“I can only say thank you to everyone I’ve worked with over the years who has contributed to the research I’ve been a part of. Atmospheric chemistry is hugely collaborative, and without that ethos it would be impossible to do the work I do,” he adds.

Professor Lewis’s research aims to understand where pollution comes from, the impacts it has on health and the environment and how it can be reduced. 

“In my own area of research, new chemistry will help us move away from combustion to cleaner forms of energy storage and propulsion,” explains Professor Lewis.

Over several decades, Professor Lewis has worked to assess the impacts of different policies and interventions that have been introduced to address poor air quality and climate change. 

His work involves measurements made in the field and directly from sources such as vehicles, and the use of that data in models.

The Lord Lewis Prize is awarded every two years by the Royal Society of Chemistry to recognise distinctive and distinguished chemical or scientific achievements, together with significant contributions to the development of science policy.

Dr Helen Pain, Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Chemistry, said: “Although we are in the midst of negotiating a particularly turbulent and challenging era, it is important to celebrate successes and advances in understanding as genuine opportunities to improve our lives.”