Tuesday, 21 October 2025
An urban geographer at the University of Nottingham has been awarded a prestigious 2025 Philip Leverhulme Prize for his research.
Dr Tom Cowan, Associate Professor in the School of Geography, has received one of the Leverhulme Trust’s prizes in recognition of his work on agrarian urbanisation and digital geographies.
His research has examined extended urbanisation in North India with a particular interest in the creation of urban real estate markets, and deployment property digitisation programmes within agrarian settings.
In particular, Dr Cowan’s research has asserted that mass urban expansion in contemporary India is being facilitated by the selective incorporation of agrarian institutions, capital, actor and territories into urban development projects; a process he terms ‘agrarian city-making.’ His more recent research, supported by a British Academy Wolfson Fellowship, has traced the social and technical politics of large-scale property digitization programmes in contemporary India.
I am honoured and incredibly grateful to receive this prize from the Leverhulme Trust. It’s testament to the fantastic research culture in the School of Geography at Nottingham. The prize will support a new direction of research exploring the political and technical dynamics of GeoAI governance tools in cities across the majority world.”
The Philip Leverhulme Prize is aimed at researchers at an early stage of their careers whose work has had international impact and whose future research career is exceptionally promising.
The Prizes have been offered since 2001 in commemoration of the contribution to the work of the Trust made by Philip Leverhulme, the Third Viscount Leverhulme and grandson of William Hesketh Lever, the founder of the Trust.
Dr Cowan has been awarded the £100,000 prize which can be used over two to three years to advance his study into this area of research.
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More information is available from Dr Tom Cowan in the School of Geography, via tom.cowan@nottingham.ac.uk
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About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 97 in the world and 17th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the third most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2024 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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