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Robert Howarth

Return to COP26 Delegation
Attending Week 2

Robert Howarth is the David R. Atkinson Professor of Ecology & Environmental Biology in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and is an Earth systems scientist, ecosystem biologist, and biogeochemist. He has worked extensively on environmental issues related to human-induced changes in the sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon cycles, the impacts of global climate change, the interaction of energy systems and the environment, and implementation of 100% renewable energy policies. He is the Founding Editor of the journal “Biogeochemistry.” Currently, Howarth serves as one of 22 members of the Climate Action Council, the group charged by law with implementing the aggressive climate goals of New York’s Climate Leadership & Community Protection Act of 2019. Previously, he co-chaired the International SCOPE Nitrogen Project (1992-2002), chaired the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Causes and Management of Coastal Eutrophication (1998-2000), coordinated the nutrient responses chapter for the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2002-2005), and chaired the International SCOPE Biofuels Project (2007-2010). Howarth has published more than 200 research papers, and these have been cited in other peer-reivewed articles more than 70,000 times, making Howarth one of the ten most cited aquatic scientists in the world. In 2011, Time Magazine named Howarth as one of 50 “People Who Matter” for his research on the greenhouse gas footprint of shale gas produced from hydraulic fracturing.

Areas of Expertise: Climate Change, Methane Emissions, Energy Policy, Renewable Energy, Nitrogen Pollution, Coastal Oceanography, Harmful Algal Blooms, Environmental Consequences of Agriculture

Associated SDGs: Clean Water and Sanitation (6), Affordable and Clean Energy (7), Responsible Consumption and Production (12), Climate Action (13), Life Below Water (14), Life On Land (15)

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