Valerie Belton

Following an undergraduate degree in Mathematics, with a smattering of psychology, from Durham University (1977) and a MA in Operational Research from Lancaster University (1978) I joined the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), where I was involved in 2 major projects - a large scale social survey to assess the effect of aircraft noise at night on residents near Heathrow airport and a study which monitored aircraft deviations from their allocated track in order to inform track separation standards. In 1981 I returned to academia to work on a PhD at Cambridge University which focused on the comparison of MCDA methods, and the field of MCDA has remained a key focus of my research to date. Since 1984 I have been an academic, initially at the University of Kent in Canterbury and since !978 at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. My interest in MCDA has continued, covering its integration with other OR/MS approaches, the design and widespread use of VISA - a visual interactive software which enables the display of inputs and outputs and facilitates sensitivity analyses. I have also been very active in the Professional Operational Research and MCDA Communities, having served as President of the International Society for MCDM (2000-2004), the UK Operational Research Society (2004-2005) and the European Association of Operational Research Societies (2009-2010) and continue to be involved in the Editorial Boards of JMCDA, EJOR and EJDP. I am now formally retired and am an Emeritus Professor of the University of Strathclyde.