Personal statement

Dr Andrew Ross Wilson is a Research Associate from the Advanced Space Concepts Lab at the University of Strathclyde. His research mainly relates to life cycle assessment, carbon accounting, cost analysis and energy systems, with a particular focus on the space sector. However, Andrew’s technical background is in environmental management, and his work is extremely interdisciplinary. In this regard, Andrew’s services are often consulted by external parties with regards to the assessment, mitigation and communication of sustainability issues. This can often vary from being very specific and technical-facing, to being broad and societal-facing, and the range of risks, impacts and decision-making processes in-between. Ultimately, his work aims to inform how society can transition towards a future that is truly sustainable, as envisaged through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Andrew’s primary research focus is currently on the integration of life cycle assessment into the concurrent design process of space missions, and particularly space-based solar power. He has been involved in every space mission design session conducted at the university where he acted as systems engineer, team leader and ecodesign expert. Due to his contributions to science and technology, Andrew was awarded the 2018 Young Scot Environment Award, was named one of Junior Chamber International’s Ten Outstanding Young Persons of Scotland and won the ESA-EISC Space for Sustainability Award 2021. As well as his research and consultancy, Andrew teaches on a variety of Undergraduate and Master's courses across both the University of Strathclyde and Glasgow Caledonian University, and supervises undergraduate project groups within the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering.