Deborah Greaves

Professor Deborah Greaves is a leading academic in Ocean Engineering at the University of Plymouth, where she holds the position of Professor in the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics. She is Director of the Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Hub and the Coastal, Ocean and Sediment Transport (COAST) Laboratory, and served as Head of School from 2017 to 2022. Her work is central to advancing offshore renewable energy in the UK and globally.

Her research focuses on offshore and marine renewable energy, particularly wave and tidal technologies, wave-structure interactions, and the integration of physical and numerical modelling. She leads major collaborative projects including the Collaborative Computational Project in Wave Structure Interaction (CCP-WSI) and PRIMaRE, and has secured significant funding from EPSRC, EU Interreg, H2020, and InnovateUK. Her research supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals, especially those related to affordable and clean energy and climate action.

The 15 most recent articles reflect a strong trend toward interdisciplinary research, combining engineering innovation with environmental sustainability, policy development, and public engagement. Her work spans fundamental hydrodynamics, technology development, commercialization challenges, and societal impact, with increasing emphasis on decarbonisation, net zero strategies, and inclusivity in engineering.

• Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), 2018
• Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng)
• Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers (FICE)

Deborah leads a large team of researchers and PhD students, securing over £20 million in research funding. She is deeply involved in mentoring and outreach, particularly in promoting gender diversity in engineering through initiatives like WISE and Supergen ORE’s EDI programs. She has advised numerous PhD students and leads multidisciplinary teams across academia and industry.

She directs the COAST Engineering Research Group and the COAST Laboratory, a state-of-the-art facility with wave basins and flumes for testing marine renewable technologies. She also leads the Supergen ORE Hub, a national consortium uniting universities and industry, and is instrumental in the development of the new Engineering and Design Facility at Plymouth, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration between engineering, computing, and design.