Robert Kates is a Senior Research Associate at Harvard, Presidential Professor of Sustainability Science at the U. of Maine, and University Professor (Emeritus) at Brown University.  Trained as a geographer he has led interdisciplinary programs addressing hazards, climate, and adaptation at the University of Dar as Salaam in Tanzania, Clark University, and the World Hunger Program at Brown University. He has participated in four IPCC Assessments, in the NRC Committee on Global Change, in State of Maine climate advisory groups, and in the adaptation panel of the NRC America's Climate Choices. He has co-authored or edited foundational studies on natural hazards (Burton, Kates, and White, 1978, 1993), on climate impact assessment (Kates, Ausubel, Berberian, 1985), and on global change in local places (Association of American Geographers Global Change and Local Places Research Group, 2003). His most recent research is on reconstruction following Hurricane Katrina and on enhancing community resilience and transformational adaptation. Dr. Kates is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.