Kevin Thomas

Professor Kevin Thomas serves as Director of the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS) at the University of Queensland's Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences. He also leads the Minderoo Centre for Plastics and Human Health at UQ and serves as Deputy-Director of the Australian Research Council Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Hyphenated Analytical Separation Technologies (HyTech). As an environmental health scientist with extensive expertise in contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), Professor Thomas has established himself as a leading researcher in environmental exposure assessment and analytical methodologies.

His educational background includes a Doctor of Philosophy and Doctoral Diploma of Science (Advanced) from Plymouth University. Professor Thomas has built a distinguished career focused on understanding human exposure to environmental contaminants, particularly plastics pollution and associated chemicals. His research spans multiple disciplines including analytical chemistry, environmental toxicology, and public health surveillance.

Professor Thomas's primary research interests center on environmental exposure assessment, with particular emphasis on plastics pollution (microplastics and nanoplastics), PFAS exposure, and wastewater-based epidemiology for community health assessment. His work combines advanced analytical methodologies with environmental monitoring to assess human and ecological risks from emerging contaminants. He has pioneered innovative approaches to exposure monitoring using alternative matrices such as explanted silicone prostheses and wristbands, and has founded the international SCORE network on sewer biomarker analysis. His research has significant implications for environmental health policy and risk management strategies.

Analysis of Professor Thomas's recent publications reveals a strong focus on plastics pollution across multiple environmental matrices (water, air, soil, food, and human tissues), advanced analytical method development for contaminants of emerging concern, and wastewater-based epidemiology as a public health surveillance tool. His work demonstrates a clear trajectory toward understanding the human health implications of environmental contaminants, particularly plastics and PFAS, while developing increasingly sophisticated analytical techniques to characterize these exposures.

As an active research leader, Professor Thomas has secured significant funding from diverse sources including the Australian Research Council, Queensland Health, NHMRC, and the Minderoo Foundation. His collaborative approach is evident in his leadership of multiple research centers and networks that bring together experts from various disciplines to address complex environmental health challenges.

Professor Thomas actively supervises numerous PhD students across a wide range of projects related to environmental health sciences. His supervision portfolio demonstrates his commitment to training the next generation of environmental health scientists while advancing research in plastics pollution, wastewater analysis, and exposure assessment. He serves as Associate Editor for the journal Science of the Total Environment, reflecting his standing in the scientific community.

Professor Thomas leads the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS), a multidisciplinary research center committed to world-class research across environmental health sciences. He has also established the InSpectra platform for identifying emerging chemical threats and co-founded the international SCORE network on sewer biomarker analysis. His research infrastructure includes advanced analytical capabilities for characterizing contaminants of emerging concern, particularly in the areas of mass spectrometry and environmental monitoring.