Biography:

Dr. Junku Yuh is the head (director) of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Tokyo Regional Office. With the increasingly global nature of science and technology, he plays a critical role in helping to bridge the research and education communities of the United States and the East Asia and Pacific region. He has over 20 years of experience in science, engineering and technology programs and policy matters as a researcher and as a U.S. federal government officer. He was, most recently, NSF program director of the Robotics and Computer Vision programs in Washington, D.C. Prior to coming to NSF, he was professor of mechanical engineering and information and computer science at the University of Hawaii for 16 years, where he also served as director of the Autonomous Systems Laboratory. Dr. Yuh is an elected Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) fellow and received several prestigious awards, including an NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award from former U.S. President George Bush (1991). He has published over 120 technical articles and edited/co-edited 10 books in the area of robotics. He is an internationally reputable author in robotics, especially underwater robotics.