DrNicole Cowell

Nicole leads the development of systems thinking methodologies for both the Hoffmann Fellowship and AI4Urban-Health project, facilitating strctured decision-making workshops to ensure research and innovation is driven by stakeholder objectives. She has developed insights into the barriers, opportunities and trade-offs for air quality, climate and health decision making, including collaborating with the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment to identify next steps in embedding health into climate decision making. Her work also explores innovative approaches to environmental monitoring and policy evaluation, including testing AI-enhanced text analysis methodologies for evaluating policies and low-cost sensors for novel monitoring opportunities. 

Nicole currently works on the UKRI AI4Urban-Health Network+.  The AI4Urban-Health Network aims to revolutionise how we design and manage urban environments to promote better health and sustainability. AI4Urban-Health seeks to develop advanced AI tools that can analyse complex urban systems and predict the impacts of changes, while also creating a framework that involves communities in shaping their environments through inclusive decision-making. 

Before joining Imperial, Nicole earned her PhD at the University of Birmingham, where she developed, evaluated and applied a low-cost internet-of-things sensor network for monitoring particulate matter. She was a research technician on the WM-Air and Birmingham Urban Observatory projects and collaborated with key national stakeholders including the NHS and Department for Transport. Here, she contributed to multiple guidance documents and reports aimed at supporting practitioners in procuring and using low-cost sensors for applied monitoring purposes.