Biographical Sketch:

Dr. Baker is Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere at the U.S. Department of Commerce. In this position, he is responsible for the nation's weather prediction and warning services, environmental satellite and information systems, marine fisheries and coastal zone management, and oceanic and atmospheric research. Dr. Baker is a co-chair of the interagency Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, an ex-officio member of the President's Council on Sustainable Development, and the United States Commissioner to the International Whaling Commission. He previously served as President of Joint Oceanographic Institutions Incorporated; as Dean of the College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington; as a group leader for Deep-Sea Physics at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory; and as an associate professor at Harvard University. He is the author of the book Planet Earth -- The View from Space, and has written extensively about climate, oceanography, and space technology issues.

Relevant Publications:

Baker, James D. 1990. Planet Earth -- The View from Space. Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press.