Robert Howarth is an Earth systems scientist with a B.A. from Amherst College and a Ph.D. from MIT and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He joined the faculty of Cornell University in 1985 and was appointed the David R. Atkinson Professor of Ecology in 1993.
Professor Howarth has published over 250 scientific papers and edited or authored eight books. His peer-reviewed papers have been cited more than 75,000 times in other peer-reviewed literature, making him one of the 100 most cited environmental scientists in the world. He is an expert on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, renewable energy policy, and the greenhouse gas footprints of blue hydrogen and biofuels. Professor Howarth is a member of the New York State Climate Action Council.