Christine Nicol was awarded a first-class degree in Zoology and a PhD on the welfare of laying hens from the University of Oxford before taking up a lectureship at the University of Bristol (1985-2017). She is currently Professor of Animal Welfare at the Royal Veterinary College and a member of the UK government’s Animal Sentience Committee, which scrutinises policies to ensure due regard is paid to animal welfare.

Christine's primary research interest is the validation of methodologies to assess animal welfare. She also strives to ensure that animal welfare research is used effectively to improve the lives of farm, companion and wildlife species through membership of working groups and committees and as Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board for the European Partnership on Animal Health and Welfare. Christine has authored and edited books on the welfare of horses and chickens and produced reports and reviews for governments and NGOs around the world.

She is an Honorary Fellow of the International Society for Applied Ethology, an honorary Life member of the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour, and writer and presenter of a BBC radio 4 series on animal ethics called Would You Eat an Alien?