CV
A full PDF version of my CV is available on request — please email me.
Education
- PhD in Complexity Science, University of Warwick, 2013–2016
- MSc in Complexity Science, University of Warwick, 2012–2013 (awarded with distinction)
- MSc in Theoretical Physics, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, 2009–2012 (109/110)
- BSc in Physics, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, 2006–2009 (108/110)
Employment
University of Exeter
- Senior Lecturer in Data Science, Department of Computer Science, 2022–present
- Lecturer in Data Science, Department of Computer Science, 2020–2022
Alan Turing Institute
- Turing Fellow, 2021–2024
University of Warwick
- Research Fellow in Data Science, Data Science Lab, Behavioural Science Group, Warwick Business School, 2016–2019
Leadership & Administrative Roles
- Deputy Director of Education and Student Experience (PGT), University of Exeter, 2024–present
- Programme Lead, MSc in AI for the Environment, University of Exeter, 2025–present
Research Grants & Awards
| Period | Funder | Project |
|---|---|---|
| 2025–2026 | Natural England | Funded research project |
| 2024–2028 | LV= / Allianz Insurance | Funded research project |
| 2023 | Department for Transport | AI to detect EV chargers |
| 2021–2023 | ESRC / ADR UK | No. 10 Data Science Fellowship |
| 2020–2021 | InnovateUK / City Science | Urban data science (Co-I) |
| 2017 | Government Office for Science | Data science for government (named researcher) |
| 2012–2016 | EPSRC | Postgraduate studentship |
Selected Publications
See the full Publications page or my Google Scholar profile.
Highlights:
- Santana, C., Botta, F., et al. (2023). COVID-19 is linked to changes in the time–space dimension of human mobility. Nature Human Behaviour, 7(10), 1729–1739.
- Collins, T., Di Clemente, R., Gutiérrez-Roig, M., & Botta, F. (2023). Spatiotemporal gender differences in urban vibrancy. Environment and Planning B.
- Botta, F. (2025). Rail journey cost calculator for Great Britain. Environment and Planning B, 52(3), 747–755.
- Botta, F., Lovelace, R., Gilbert, L., & Turrell, A. (2025). Packaging code and data for reproducible research. Environment and Planning B.
- Chen, Z., & Botta, F. (2025). The geography of inequalities in access to healthcare across England. Journal of Physics: Complexity.
PhD Supervision
| Period | Student | Project |
|---|---|---|
| 2025–2028 | Yuchen Zhou | Exploring causality in urban human mobility dynamics |
| 2025–2028 | Anna Kaygorodova | Tackling societal challenges with complex systems and computational social science |
| 2024–2027 | Selorm Komla Darkey | Geospatial data for property information |
| 2024–2027 | Tatiana Carolina Cantillo-Garcia | Recreational value of landscape features |
| 2023–2026 | Zihao Chen | Public transport travel time variability and socio-spatial inequality |
| 2022–2026 | Thomas Hogger Gasby | Colonial urban environments and mobility |
| 2022–2026 | Nathanael Sheehan | Open data for public health |
| 2021–2025 | Thomas Collins | Modelling urban environments using mobile phone and online data (awarded) |
Postdoctoral Researchers
- Thomas Collins, Pedro Henrique Batista de Barros, Nectarios Keane Nugroho (2025–2026)
- Melike Dila Karatas (2023)
Advisory & Policy Engagement
See the full Policy & Impact page.
Select Committees: Transport (oral evidence, 2024) · Public Accounts (written evidence, 2025) · Built Environment (written evidence, 2025) · Public Administration & Constitutional Affairs (written evidence, 2023)
Invited talks to policy audiences: Data Science in Transport Board · UK Cost of Living & Equalities Group · Department for Transport AI Strategy Roundtable · ONS Data Science Campus · Cross-Government Group on Inequalities
Editorial & Service Roles
Editorial
- Academic editor, PLOS ONE (2018–present)
- Associate editor, Applied Network Science (2024–present)
- General Chair, Conference on Complex Systems 2024 (CCS2024)
- Program Chair, Complenet (2022–2023)
- Guest editor, Advances in Complex Systems (2024)
Professional society
- Elected member, Executive Committee of the Complex Systems Society (2024–2027)
- Elected council member, Complex Systems Society (2024–2027)
- Elected member, Steering Committee of the Conference on Complex Systems (2024–2027)
Reviewing Reviewer for over 40 journals including Nature Human Behaviour, Environment and Planning B, Royal Society Open Science, EPJ Data Science, Journal of the Royal Society Interface, PLOS ONE, and others.
Teaching
Extensive teaching experience at undergraduate, postgraduate (MSc), MBA, and executive education levels in data science, machine learning, and quantitative methods. Currently Programme Lead for the MSc in AI for the Environment at Exeter (2025–present).
Modules at Exeter:
- Social Networks & Text Analysis (MSc, 2023–present) — module lead; design and delivery
- Artificial Intelligence and its Applications (BSc Year 2, 2020–present)
- Machine Learning and Data Science (BSc Year 3, 2020–present)
Previous teaching (University of Warwick, 2016–2019):
- Data Science for Social Scientists (MSc/MBA) — design and delivery
- Quantitative Methods (MBA, executive education)
Public Engagement
- Databeers Exeter — founder and co-organiser, public engagement events on data science
- Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter — ongoing research collaboration and public exhibition (2024–present)
- Exeter Science Centre — community engagement events, local schools and public (2024–2025)
- Various invited talks to schools, colleges, and community groups (2014–present)
See the full Public Engagement page for more.