Editorial (18.1):

Peter Allen is Emeritus Professor of Evolutionary Complex Systems at Cranfield University. He has a PhD in Theoretical Physics, and worked with Professor Ilya Prigogine at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles from 1970 - 1987. Since 1987 he has developed and run the Complex Systems Research Centre at Cranfield University which, following his partial retirement is now run by Professor Liz Varga. He is a reviewer for many journals and project evaluator for UK Research Councils as well as for the EU. He has been working on the mathematical modelling of change and innovation in social, economic, financial and ecological systems, and the development of integrated systems models linking the physical, ecological and socio-economic aspects of complex systems as a basis for improved decision support systems. Professor Allen has written and edited several books and published well over 200 articles in a range of fields including ecology, social science, urban and regional science, economics, systems theory, low carbon energy production and supply. He co-edited the Sage Handbook of Complexity and Management and is co-author with Jean Boulton and Cliff Bowman of Embracing Complexity which is just out from OUP.