Heribert Hirt is Director of URGV Plant Genomics, a research institute in the south of Paris, France. Having obtained his academic degrees from the universities of Cape Town and Vienna, he spent post-doctoral periods at the universities of Oxford and Wageningen before taking up a professor position in Vienna. Professor Hirt has authored over 100 scientific peer-reviewed research publications and reviews and has edited a number of scientific books. He has received numerous scientific awards and is coeditor of several international journals.