Robert Friedman is Vice President for Policy and University Relations at the Venter Institute. Friedman directs JCVI’s Policy Center and is also active in several projects ongoing in the Institute’s Environmental Genomics Group. Prior to joining the Venter Institute, Friedman was Vice President for Research at The Heinz Center, a nonprofit policy research organization that brings together collaborators from government, industry, environmental organizations, and academia. Earlier, Friedman was a Senior Associate at the Office of Technology Assessment, U.S. Congress (OTA). For 16 years, he advised Congressional committees on issues involving environmental and natural resources policy.

Dr. Friedman received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in Ecological Systems Analysis, concentrating in ecology, environmental engineering, and systems analysis. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.