Robert Downs

Dr. Robert R. Downs serves as the senior digital archivist and acting head of cyberinfrastructure and informatics research and development at CIESIN, the Center for International Earth Science Information Network, a research and data center of the Columbia Climate School of Columbia University. He is a co-chair of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) Data Working Group, a co-chair of the Research Data Alliance (RDA) Interest Group on Repository Platforms for Research Data, and a co-chair of the Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) Information Quality Cluster. He serves on the Governance Committee for ESIP and on the Editorial Board of the International Science Council (ISC) Committee on Data (CODATA) Data Science Journal. He is a Senior Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and is a member of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and the International Association for Information Services and Technology (IASSIST). His research interests include the development, management, use, evaluation, and scientific impact of data systems, digital libraries and repositories; digital preservation; data management; data policy; data confidentiality; software reuse; participatory design; business process re-design; and organizational change.