Richard J. Johnson, M.D. is the Tomas Berl Professor of Medicine of the Renal Division and Hypertension at the University of Colorado since 2008. He is a highly cited scientist with over 700 publications and who has lectured in over 40 countries, has authored two books sugar (The Sugar Fix (2008) and the The Fat Switch (2012), and whose research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health. His primary research interest has been on mechanisms causing kidney disease, but he also has performed research on mechanisms causing obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. He has special interest in the potential role of sugar (especially fructose) and its byproduct, uric acid in driving metabolic and kidney disorders. He has also studied the effects of climate change and its potential role in causing kidney disease and obesity in this population.