Bob studied aerospace and industrial engineering at Ryerson University; physics and astronomy at the University of Toronto; and space science at Cornell University where he became special assistant to Carl Sagan. In 1987 Bob founded the International Space University (ISU) with Peter Diamandis and Todd Hawley, where he served as the university's first Associate Administrator for Strategic Planning and chaired the board's administrative and strategic planning committees during ISU's first phase of development. Today Bob continues to serve on the Board of Trustees of ISU; now a well established global institution operating out of its Central Campus in Strasbourg, France, with thousands of graduates worldwide. Bob first joined forces with Diamandis and Hawley in the creation of Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS), which continues today as the largest student run space organization in the world, and the Space Generation Foundation, whose youth outreach programs today include Yuri's Night and the Space Generation Congress, with UN Observer Status and space policy activities through its sister organization, the Space Generation Advisory Council. .

Bob is a strong advocate of the NewSpace movement and has been a catalyst for a number of astropreneurial ventures throughout his career.  He serves on the boards of numerous international space organizations and in 2005 was elected Vice President of the International Lunar Exploration Working Group (ILEWG) as well as a Member of the International Institute of Space Law of the International Astronautical Federation.  

Bob is the recipient of four international space awards: the K.E. Tsiolkovski Medal (Russia, 1995), the Space Frontier “Vision to Reality” Award (USA , 1994), the Arthur C. Clarke Commendation (Sri Lanka, 1990) and Aviation & Space Technology Laurel (USA, 1988). He is a contributing author of "Blueprint for Space", published by the Smithsonian Institution (1992), and "Return to the Moon", published by Apogee Books (2005).

In 2005 Bob received a Doctorate of Space Achievement (honoris causa) from the International Space University for “distinguished accomplishments in support of humanity’s exploration and use of space.”