Dr Timothy Littlewood, Associate Deputy Director
Natural History Museum, London
Tim Littlewood DSc PhD is Executive Director of Science at the Natural History Museum, London, where he leads the implementation of the Museum’s Science Strategy to 2031 and oversees one of the world’s largest natural history science programmes, encompassing collections, digitisation, research and scientific infrastructure.
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A parasitologist and evolutionary biologist by training, Tim’s research has focused on biodiversity discovery, systematics, neglected tropical diseases, parasite evolution and molecular diagnostics. He has worked extensively with partners across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas, contributing to research, capacity strengthening and international collaborations in countries affected by infectious and neglected tropical diseases.
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Tim has extensive experience leading large-scale international research partnerships and programmes, including serving as Senior Responsible Owner and budget holder for the Gates Foundation-funded DeWorm3 programme. He is a strong advocate for the use of natural history collections and long-term specimen-based research, recognising the critical role that collections and collecting play in advancing scientific discovery, understanding disease and environmental change, and generating evidence to inform future policy and practice.
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His interests increasingly focus on strengthening equitable international partnerships, scientific capacity and research infrastructure to support sustainable solutions to global health, biodiversity and environmental challenges.
