DrCostas Velis

As an academic, I lead inter- and transdisciplinary teams to generate impactful quantitative evidence for addressing some of the greatest global challenges of our time. My work focuses on preventing plastic pollution from solid waste, advancing the circular economy and resource recovery, and supporting a Just Transition for informal recyclers across the Global South.

I currently co-chair the Exposures Working Group of the Lancet Countdown on Health and Plastics and lead the Waste and Circularity Group within UNEP's Community of Practice on Monitoring and Assessment Harmonization, administered by the Global Partnership on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter (GPML). I previously led the Modelling and Methodologies Harmonisation Working Group (2021-2024). I also serve on the CIWM Policy and Innovation Forum, which helps inform the strategic direction of the waste and resources sector in the UK. Between 2016 and 2022, I led the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) Task Force on Marine Litter, established to address plastic pollution arising from mismanaged solid waste in the Global South.

My research team has led or substantially contributed to the development of several influential models for quantifying plastic pollution, including SPOT, the Waste Flow Diagram (WFD), P2O, the ISWA Plastic Pollution Calculator, and PLAST, as well as the landmark OECD Global Plastics Outlook. My team's research has been published in leading journals and is frequently featured in The Conversation and international media outlets, including the BBC.

I have published in Nature, Science, The Lancet, Environmental Science & Technology, Journal of Hazardous Materials, and other leading journals. I contribute to the academic community as Editor-in-Chief of Waste Management & Research (WM&R) (since 2019), Associate Editor of Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology (CREST), and, more recently, Specialty Chief Editor for Waste Management at Frontiers in Sustainability. I regularly peer review for journals including Science, Environmental Science & Technology, Journal of Hazardous Materials, Journal of Cleaner Production, Waste Management, Science of the Total Environment, and Habitat International, and I serve on research assessment panels. I am a member of several professional bodies, including CIWM (as a Chartered Waste Manager) and the Institute of Physics, and I recently served on the Steering Committee of the Scientists' Coalition for an Effective Plastic Treaty.

My expertise in waste and resources management has led to invitations to chair conference sessions and serve on numerous scientific committees. I frequently travel internationally to participate in research projects and deliver keynote and invited lectures, as well as expert workshops, in cities around the world, including New York, Singapore, Buenos Aires, Bangkok, Vienna, Copenhagen, Munich, Geneva, Luanda, and Athens. I was honoured to be a member of the core author team for the first Global Waste Management Outlook, commissioned by UNEP. I also chaired the Scientific Committee of the Waste Atlas database and coordinated several ISWA task forces, including those on Globalisation and Waste Management and Resource Management. In addition, I contributed to the ad hoc expert group that developed the methodological protocol for SDG Indicator 11.6.1. The global waste management and plastic pollution model SPOT provided the first worldwide estimate of this indicator and was included in the official UN Sustainable Development Goals reporting in 2022.

Prior to joining Imperial College London in 2024, I was based at the University of Leeds, where I worked from 2012 to 2024 and pioneered the circular economy agenda across the institution by establishing the Circular Economy and Resource Recovery (CERRY) network. Earlier, I spent two years at Imperial College London as a Research Associate in Resource Recovery. I obtained my PhD in Environmental Engineering from the Centre for Energy and Resource Technology at Cranfield University. Through this applied research, I contributed to the understanding of material flows through mechanical-biological treatment (MBT) facilities and the production of quality-assured solid recovered fuel (SRF).

I also hold an MSc in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development from Imperial College London, where I investigated informal recycling systems in developing countries and the emergence of modern solid waste management in Victorian Britain. During my studies, I received the award for Best Sustainable Project Design for the guide Sustainable Landfill. My undergraduate studies were in Physics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, where I specialised in Environmental Physics and researched the evolution of urban air pollution and the effectiveness of control measures in Athens between 1980 and 2000.