Anthony J. Parsons is Emeritus Professor at the University of Sheffield. His research interests include hillslopes, dryland geomorphology and soil erosion. He has chaired Working Group 1 of EU COST Action ES1306 (Connecting European Connectivity Research). He is a former chair of the International Geographical Union Commission on Geomorphic Challenges for the Twenty-First Century and a former Chair of the British Geomorphological Research Group (now the British Society for Geomorphology).