Robin Spence is a structural engineer and Professor of Architectural Engineering in the Department of Architecture at the University of Cambridge. He is also a director and past chairman of Cambridge Architectural Research Ltd.

After two years of structural design practice with Ove Arup and Partners he spent two years teaching at the University of Zambia, followed by two years as Research Officer for the Intermediate Technology Development Group, researching small-scale building materials technology in Africa and India. After obtaining his PhD in the Engineering Department at Cambridge, he has been with the Architecture Department since 1975, and a Director and Joint Director of the Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies since 1985. He is also a Fellow of Magdalene College.

His principal research and consultancy interests are disaster risk assessment and disaster mitigation. He has directed numerous research and consultancy contracts and he is the author of several books and more than 150 technical papers in these areas. Clients for projects on risk assessment (earthquake, windstorm and subsidence) have included insurers, reinsurers and brokers. Research projects on disaster mitigation have been funded by the EU and EPSRC.

In September 2002 he was elected for a four-year term as President of the European Association for Earthquake Engineering, and is currently Vice-President.