Joseph Holden (geographer)

Joseph Holden (born 26 December 1975) is a British physical geographer who specialises in hydrological research, geomorphology and land management. He is Professor of Physical Geography at the University of Leeds.

Early life and education
Holden was born in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear. He read Geography at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, receiving a BA (later upgraded to MA) in 1997 and he subsequently completed his PhD at Durham University in 2000.

Academic career
After finishing his PhD, Holden joined the University of Leeds as a teaching fellow. He became Lecturer in Physical Geography in 2005, Reader the following year and Professor of Physical Geography in 2007. At the time he was the youngest full Professor in the country.

Holden is one of the programme directors of a UK Research and Innovation project looking into river pollution. As of April 2023, his h-index is 64.

Honours
Holden was a recipient of the 2007 Philip Leverhulme Prize and in 2011 was awarded the Gordon Warwick Medal by the British Society for Geomorphology.