Obituary Prof. Dr. David G. Robinson

Prof. David G. Robinson, born 1947 in North Shields, UK, was a leading plant cell biologist known for his research on intracellular trafficking and cellular organization. After University education and his PhD at the University of Leeds, he spent formative years as postdoc and lecturer at Stanford University. He next moved to Germany where he habilitated in the subject botany. As a Professor at the Universities of Göttingen and later Heidelberg, David Robinson contributed significantly to understanding how proteins are sorted and transported in plant cells. He served in several leading functions at both universities and was instrumental for the foundation of the Heidelberg Institute of Plant Sciences and later the Centre for Organismal Studies Heidelberg. Well known for his disputatious personality and his british humor David Robinson also was a vocal critic of "plant neurobiology”, who joined an international group of scientists in arguing against anthropomorphizing plant behaviors. He emphasized clarity and precision in scientific language and mentored many students and postdocs. His adjunct professorship at the Chinese University of Hongkong and the yearly meeting of the European Network for Endomembrane Research (ENPER) that he initiated speak of his passion for science as a global network. He had a lasting impact on the plant science community, and on many students and fellow scientists worldwide. David Robinson passed away on November 5^th, 2024, leaving a legacy of groundbreaking research and influence in the field.