BUSB 5107
Robert Hobbins is an Associate Teaching Professor of Sustainability and Director of Sustainable Business Programs at the CU Denver Business School. His research seeks to solve today’s water scarcity and climate challenges through private sector innovation in technologies, business practices, stewardship, and partnerships. He is Co-PI and Co-Director of the NSF GERMINATION Center for Urban Transformations, which is developing a transdisciplinary training program to help graduate students and researchers conduct meaningful and impactful sustainability research. Robert is Senior Personnel on a 1.8 million NSF DISES grant given to a team of interdisciplinary researchers at CU Denver to support a 5-year study on climate-resilient and equitable housing in urban areas, including the Denver region. Robert is also conducting grant-funded research that is developing a framework for more integrated corporate sustainability strategies and decision-making, considering the food-water-energy-biodiversity nexus.
Robert has taught graduate courses on corporate decarbonization and climate transition planning, business environmental sustainability and stewardship, strategic risk management, sustainability leadership, sustainability disclosures and reporting, as well as undergraduate introductory courses in environmental science and sustainability. Robert has also led study abroad programs to showcase sustainable business practices and solutions in international business environments.
As Director of Sustainable Business Programs, Robert helped to develop and then launch a new MS in Sustainable Business at the Business School in the fall of 2024. He currently oversees the program, related specializations in the MBA and other MS programs, the Business School’s Sustainable Business Advisory Council, and the Sustainability Corps program, which matches talented graduate students with corporate sustainability leaders in the community.
Robert’s service includes serving on the Board of Directors of Sonoran Schools, a charter management organization operating college-prep and STEM-focused public schools in Arizona, and serving on the Advisory Board of Impact Driven, a business strategy, sustainability, and communication consulting firm. In 2025, he was awarded the Laube Community Impact Awards for his business engagement and impact in the Colorado community.
Education
Ph.D. Sustainability, Arizona State University
M.S. Community Resources and Development – Sustainable Communities, Arizona State University
M.Ed. Science Education, The Ohio State University
B.S. Physics and Astronomy, The Ohio State University
Areas of expertise
Corporate Water Stewardship
Business Sustainability
Sustainability Education
Climate Transition Planning
Risk and Resilience
Select Publications
Cox, M., Harrison, H., Partelow, S., Curtis, S., Elser, S., Hammond-Wagner, C, Hobbins, R., …, Whittaker, B. (2023). How academic podcasting can change academia and its relationship with society: a conversation and guide. Frontiers in Communication: Science and Environmental Communication.
Westman, L., Patterson, J., Macrorie, R., Orr, C., Ashcraft, C. Castán Broto, V., …, Webb, R. (2022). Compound urban crises. Ambio, 51, 1402-1415
Muñoz-Erickson, T., Meerow, S., Hobbins, R., et al. (2021). Beyond Bouncing Back? Comparing and Contesting Urban Resilience Frames in US and Latin American Contexts. Landscape and Urban Planning. 214.
Hobbins, R., Muñoz-Erickson, T., & Miller, C. (2021). Producing and communicating flood risk: A knowledge system analysis of FEMA flood maps in New York City. In Z. Hamstead, M. Berbés-Blázquez, E. Cook, D. Iwaniec, T. McPhearson, & T. A. Muñoz-Erickson (Eds.), Resilient Urban Futures. Springer International Publishing.
Muñoz-Erickson, T., Selkirk, K., Hobbins, R., Miller, C., Feagan, M., Iwaniec, D., Miller, T., & Cook, E. (2021). Anticipatory resilience: Bringing back the future into urban planning and knowledge systems. In Z. Hamstead, M. Berbés-Blázquez, E. Cook, D. Iwaniec, T. McPhearson, & T. A. Muñoz-Erickson (Eds.), Resilient Urban Futures. Springer International Publishing.
Awards
2025 Laube Community Impact Award, CU Denver Business School
2021 Science Communication in Practice Award, Ecological Society of America
2020 Outstanding Graduate Student, College of Global Futures, Arizona State University
2018 Knowledge Mobilization Impact Award Finalist, Arizona State University
2013 Distinguished Educator Award, Flinn Foundation
2011 Senior Division Top Teacher Award, Arizona State Science & Engineering Fair
2010 Arizona Teacher of the Year Award, Arizona Technology Council
2010 Teacher of the Year, Sonoran Science Academy - Tucson
2010 Outstanding Teacher Award, Arizona Junior Science and Humanities Symposium
2009 Junior High Division Top Teacher Award, Arizona State Science & Engineering Fair
