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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E555-E556]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING ROBERT H. TWISS, PH.D.
______
HON. JARED HUFFMAN
of california
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Mr. HUFFMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the 85th
birthday of Dr. Robert H. Twiss and a lifetime of work promoting and
progressing environmental stewardship in Marin County and the entire
Bay Area.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Dr. Twiss and his family moved to
Washington, then Oregon, and finally settled in San Jose, California,
when Dr. Twiss was in the second grade. After attending Willow Glen
High School, Dr. Twiss graduated from San Jose State University in
1955, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Conservation. During this
period, he proudly played the banjo for a band in San Francisco. He
then honorably served in the Michigan Air National Guard and the United
States Air Force as a tactical fighter pilot. He later earned both his
Master's and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, School of Natural
Resources.
After completing his education, Dr. Twiss opened his own consulting
company, which is still active today. In this capacity, he has
consulted on projects for California's Attorney General, the United
States Environmental Protection Agency, the California Department of
Water Resources, and many other important agencies and environmental
organizations.
Dr. Twiss was Professor of Environmental Planning at The University
of California, Berkeley from 1968 to 1994. In this role, Dr. Twiss
taught new generations of environmentalists all aspects of the work
including planning, research, and consulting. He was also involved in
graduate-level instruction on ecological planning and environmental law
and served in a variety of leadership roles including as Chair of the
Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, and
Chair of the Faculty of the College of Environmental Design. He also
directed the Ph.D. program in Environmental Planning.
Among his many contributions to research on environmental planning,
Dr. Twiss was Faculty Principal Investigator for the Research Program
in Environmental Planning and Geographic Systems at the University of
California, which developed tools and programs to allow open access to
geographic information on land use, natural resources, and became the
world's first web-based geographic information system in 1993. Dr.
Twiss, always wanting to share his knowledge and information with
others, received the patent for his system and put it in the public
domain for others to use and benefit from.
Dr. Twiss enjoys spending time with his loving wife and partner Amy
Skewes-Cox and their son Carson, along with his children Gregory and
Gail from a previous marriage. He loves spending his time outside in
nature hiking, sailing, and flying his own small plane. He is also
known as an avid banjo and ukulele player, much to the delight of his
friends and family.
Madam Speaker, Dr. Twiss's leadership and vision has helped make
remarkable strides towards maintaining and growing environmentally
sustainable practices that will benefit the region and all who work to
improve the environment for generations to come. Therefore,
[[Page E556]]
please join me in recognizing Dr. Robert H. Twiss on the occasion of
his 85th birthday.
____________________
