Robert Stoner is the Deputy Director for Science and Technology of the MIT Energy Initiative, and Founding Director of the Tata Center for Technology and Design.  He currently serves on the Science and Technology Committee of the Alliance for Sustainable Energy which oversees the National Renewable Energy Lab, and is member of the board of directors of the Tata Center at IIT-Bombay.  His current research interests include energy technology and policy for developing countries, and design for resource constrained settings.

Dr. Stoner has worked extensively in academia and industry throughout his career.  He is the inventor of numerous optical measurement and computational techniques, and has built and managed successful technology startups in the semiconductor, IT and optics industries.  From 2007 through 2009 he lived and worked in Africa and India while serving in a variety of senior roles within the Clinton Foundation.

He earned his Bachelor’s degree in engineering physics from Queen’s University, and his Ph.D. from Brown University in condensed matter physics.