Charles Gerba is a professor in the Departments Environmental Science, Biosystems Engineering (College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Environment), and Community and Environmental Health (College of Public Health) at the University of Arizona. He received his B.S. in Microbiology from Arizona State University and a PhD from the University of Miami (Florida) and was a faculty member at Baylor College of Medicine before accepting a position at the University of Arizona. He has been an author of more than 700 articles including several books on environmental microbiology and risk assessment. He conducts research on the contamination and control of pathogens by food, water, and indoor environments. He has served as a consultant to the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control, Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, FDA and other local governmental organizations. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Academy of Microbiology, and the International Water Association. In 2012 he received the outstanding contributions award from the International Association for Food and Environmental Virology. In 2020 he received the Water Heroes Award from the Water Environment Federation for his work on SARS-CoV-2.