Vincent Savolainen

Professor Vincent Savolainen is a Professor of Organismic Biology at Imperial College London's Department of Life Sciences (Silwood Park Campus), part of the Faculty of Natural Sciences. He serves as Director of the Georgina Mace Centre for the Living Planet, focusing on interdisciplinary environmental challenges. Previously, he was Deputy Head of the Department of Life Sciences (2013–2016) and Deputy Head of Molecular Systematics at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (2007–2016).

His research integrates field ecology, molecular phylogenetics, and population genomics to address biodiversity preservation, evolutionary biology, and societal challenges like pandemic monitoring. Key areas include ecological speciation in palms, same-sex behavior in animals, and zoonotic disease surveillance in bats. He has pioneered environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques for biodiversity assessment and led studies on the genetic basis of traits like sexual orientation in primates.

Professor Savolainen holds prestigious awards, including the Linnean Society’s Bicentenary Medal (2006), European Research Council Advanced Grant (2008), and Coincy Medal for Botany (2014). He sits on UK Natural Environment Research Council panels and Royal Society committees.

His group includes researchers like Dr Marco Balducci and Dr Louis Bell-Roberts, and collaborates with institutions like the Zoological Society of London and Royal Society of Biology. Current projects explore plant-insect coevolution, conservation genetics of deer species, and the evolution of endothermy in fish.