Nigel Shadbolt to be knighted for services to Science and Engineering

Professor Shadbolt was named in the Prime Minister’s list for the 2013 Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Professor Shadbolt has been instrumental in developing the interdisciplinary field of Web Science. He is Chairman and Co-Founder of the pioneering Open Data Institute (ODI). With Sir Tim Berners-Lee he led the team which developed data.gov.uk, a single point of access for U.K. governmental data.. The two also act as Information Advisors to the U.K. government. Professor Shadbolt is a member of the Public Sector Transparency Board, which sets open data standards across the public sector in the U.K.

Alongside his many governmental roles, Professor Shadbolt is still actively involved in research, heading up the Web and Internet Science Group at the University of Southampton.

In response to his honour Professor Shadbolt said “I’m surprised and delighted to be recognised with this very special honour. I’m fortunate to have been involved at a crucial period working with outstanding colleagues in the development of both Web Science and the Open Data movement. I hope that I can continue to make a difference as we seek to understand how the web is evolving, and ensure that we are empowered individually and collectively.”