Professor Robert Butler

Biography

Since August 2025 I am an emeritus professor at the University of Aberdeen, having "retired" from my position as Professor of Tectonics. Aberdeen was my final port of call in a career that began after education at the Universities of Leeds and Wales (Swansea) back in the mists of time. I went on to positions at Durham University and the Open University before moving back to my alma mater, Leeds, in 1991. I moved to Scotland and the University of Aberdeen in 2008. Most of my research (and publications) has dealt with contractional tectonics - evolution of mountain belts, thrust systems and basin inversion - chiefly integrating diverse geological information (especially stratigraphy) with structural geology, I continue to research the geology and tectonics of mountain belts and sedimentary basins, especially to understand the distribution and geological context of their earth resources.

I share knowledge through The Shear Zone - a YouTube Channel along with an associated website. There you'll find extensive open teaching materials, films about classic (and not so classic) geo-sites and "work-along" exercises in topics on geological interpretation and analysis - from seismic profiles through geological maps and cross-section construction. 

External Memberships

Fellow of Geological Society of London - and Chartered Geologist

Member: Scottish Geology Trust, Italian Geological Society and European Geosciences Union.

Prizes and Awards

President's Award, Geological Society of London.

Awarded Wollaston Fund of GSL

Inaugural recipient o the Dewey Medal, GSL.