Our Team & Affiliates
Each of Urban 360's team members has their own individual area of academic expertise, experience and interest. The team's combined knowledge and skills ensure that Urban 360 consistently produces world-leading research and analytical insights.
Professor Grant Allen
Senior Consultant
Areas of expertise: Meteorology, Remote Sensing, Clouds and Aerosols, Airborne Measurement, Air Quality, Greenhouse Gases.
Dr Thomas Bannan
COO & Co-Founder
Tom is an experienced research scientist and a Research Fellow at the University of Manchester. With a wealth of expertise, he has led numerous international field campaigns, assessing air quality across the globe both on the ground but also on the British Atmospheric Research Aircraft. Tom’s research addresses the complexities of atmospheric chemistry and the critical issue of air pollution.
Areas of expertise: Atmospheric pollution, Atmospheric chemistry, Air quality, Air sampling.
Dr Ian Crawford
Director of Research & Development
Ian has 15 years of experience as a research fellow investigating the impacts of bioaerosols on health, air quality and climate. He specializes in the development of technologies to detect bioaerosols in real-time.
Areas of expertise: Atmospheric science, Instrument development, Real-time bioaerosol detection, Machine learning, Data science.
Professor James Evans
CEO & Co-Founder
James is CEO of Urban 360 and has worked in the sustainability sector for over 25 years. He is a Professor of Smart and Sustainable Cities at the University of Manchester, where he also directs the Manchester Urban Institute. James is passionate about making cities more sustainable and healthier, and founded Urban 360 to help cities achieve this goal.
Areas of expertise: Smart governance, Urban sustainability, Innovation management, Planning.
Dr Jessica Girdwood
Director of Engineering
Areas of expertise: Atmospheric science, Instrument development, Electronic engineering.
Dr Emily Matthews
Project Delivery Associate
Emily is a research scientist at the University of Manchester with expertise in making measurements to understand the composition of the atmosphere.
Areas of expertise: Atmospheric science, Air pollution, Data analysis.
Becky Pinder
Web Design & Marketing Associate
Becky is an experienced digital marketing and web design professional with a strong interest in health, wellbeing, science, and the environment. She recently completed an undergraduate degree in Psychology and is now pursuing postgraduate qualifications alongside her digital work for Urban 360.
Areas of expertise: Digital marketing, Web design, Branding, Content.
Professor David Topping
CTO & Co-Founder
David has over 20 years of experience across multiple research domains and working for research organisations. He started his journey with a Physics degree at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. His early work focused on building computational models of how molecules important for air-quality and the atmosphere evolve, before moving on to adoption of data science and AI methodologies and working with a range of stakeholders.
Areas of expertise: Data analysis, Numerical modelling, Data science and enabling technology adoption.
Yunzhi Yu
Senior Consultant
Yunzhi is a strategic and innovative professional with rich experience in startups and Fortune 500 companies. She brings deep expertise in commercialisation and R&D. After serving for over two years as the business director at Urban 360, she now supports the company as a senior consultant, continuing her mission to deliver tailored solutions.
Areas of expertise: Business strategy, Project management, Product development, Cross-functional and cross-culture collaboration, Lean and Six Sigma.
Urban 360 Affiliates & Professional Connections
Urban 360 collaborates with a variety of affiliates.
The University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is one of the top public universities in the UK, recognised globally for its commitment to pioneering research, outstanding teaching and social responsibility.
Urban 360 is a spin-out of The University of Manchester and we continue to collaborate on a variety of impactful research projects.