Dr. Walter Copan is Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado. Dr. Copan also serves as senior adviser of the Renewing American Innovation Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Prior to joining the Colorado School of Mines, Dr. Copan served as Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and 16th director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a position to which he was confirmed unanimously by the Senate. In this role he served as the U.S. principal presidential adviser on standards policy and technology matters and provided high-level oversight and strategic leadership for NIST, a world-leading science and technology institute.