Chris Pearson

Chris Pearson is Professor of Environmental History and the Chaddock Chair of Economic and Social History at the University of Liverpool, within the School of Histories, Languages and Cultures. His interdisciplinary research spans environmental history, animal studies, urban history, and the history of medicine, with a focus on human-animal relationships in modern cities.

His research interests include the cultural and environmental history of dogs, the history of emotions, urban health, and multispecies coexistence. He has led and co-led several major Wellcome Trust-funded projects, including Melting Metropolis: Everyday Histories of Heat and Health in London, New York, and Paris since 1945 (2023–2029) and Remaking One Health: Decolonial Approaches to Street Dogs and Rabies Prevention in India (2021–2026). His recent books, Dogopolis (2021) and Collared (2024), have been widely published and translated, reflecting both scholarly and public engagement.

Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong thematic focus on dogs in urban environments across time and space, examining their roles as workers, companions, pests, and cultural symbols. His work integrates environmental, medical, and emotional histories, often with a transnational lens. He frequently engages with public audiences through media, podcasts, and digital platforms.

• Regional Representative for Britain and Ireland, European Society for Environmental History
• Editorial Board Member, Critical Military Studies (2015–present)
• Editorial Board Member, Environmental History (2014–present)
• Fellow, Royal Historical Society (2017–present)

Professor Pearson supervises postgraduate research on topics including nuclear culture, emotional history, and human-animal relations. He has developed the interactive smartphone app Sniffing the Past, which maps historical canine sites in London, Paris, and New York. His teaching includes modules on health, environmental humanities, and cultural history. He has also examined PhD theses in history.