Dr. Robert Hanner is a Professor in the Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Institute of Ontario at the University of Guelph. Since 2005, he has built a wide-ranging research program in molecular biodiversity, using DNA-based tools to track agricultural pests and plant diseases, expose food fraud and market substitution, and support the conservation of aquatic species at risk through environmental DNA research.

He did his B.Sc at Eastern Michigan University and his Ph.D at the University of Oregon, and was a Kalbfleisch Postdoctoral Fellow at the American Museum of Natural History. 

He served as Curatorial Associate of the American Museum of Natural History’s Ambrose Monell Cryo Collection and as Scientific Director of the Coriell Institute of Medical Research, before joining the University of Guelph. He was also the President of the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER), and is a leading figure in the global DNA barcoding initiative.