L. Hunter Lovins (born as Sheldon, February 26, 1950, in Middlebury, Vermont) is an American environmentalist, author, and supporter of sustainable development. She is a co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute and serves as the president of the nonprofit group Natural Capitalism Solutions.

Education and career

Hunter Lovins earned a degree in sociology and political science from Pitzer College in 1972 and a law degree from Loyola Law School in 1975. As a licensed lawyer in California, she helped create the California Conservation Project, an organization focused on urban forestry and environmental education. She worked as assistant director for the group for about six years. Later, she served as a policy adviser for Friends of the Earth under David Brower.

In 1982, Hunter Lovins and Amory Lovins started the Rocky Mountain Institute in Snowmass, Colorado. They first operated the research organization from their home and called it a "think-and-do-tank." Hunter Lovins led the institute’s strategy efforts as CEO until 2002.

Lovins has taught at several universities, including Dartmouth College, where she was a visiting professor, and the Bainbridge Graduate Institute’s Pinchot University, which later became Presidio Graduate School in 2016.

In 2013, she mentored participants in Unreasonable at Sea, a program that helps social entrepreneurs grow their businesses globally. The program was created by Unreasonable Group, Semester at Sea, and Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design.

Lovins is a founding professor of Bard College’s MBA in sustainability program and continues to teach there. She has spoken at major events such as the World Economic Forum, the United States Congress, and the World Summit on Sustainable Development. She has also provided advice to community groups, governments, and companies.

Lovins is known for creating the term "global weirding," a phrase that plays on "global warming." It describes unusual weather patterns that were not previously observed.

Awards and recognition

In 1983, she and Amory Lovins were given the Right Livelihood Award for developing new ways to use energy that help keep the world safe.

Lovins won a Nissan Award in 1993 for writing an article about the Hypercar. The Lindbergh Foundation honored her with the Lindbergh Award in 1999 for making important contributions to energy and environmental work. Lovins received a Leadership in Business Award in June 2001 at the Natural Business Conference for her efforts in promoting healthy and sustainable lifestyles.

In 2000, she was recognized by Loyola Law School’s Alumni Association Board of Governors with an award. The next year, Lovins and her co-authors of Natural Capitalism were given a Shingo Prize for research on manufacturing. In 2005, she received Pitzer College’s Distinguished Alumni Award.

Time magazine included Lovins in its 2000 list of "Heroes for the Planet."

Publications

Lovins co-authored the following books:

• Energy/War, Breaking the Nuclear Link (1981)
• Brittle Power: Energy Strategy for National Security (1982)
• Least-Cost Energy: Solving the CO2 Problem (1981)
• The First Nuclear World War: A Strategy for Preventing Nuclear Wars and the Spread of Nuclear Weapons (1983)
• Energy Unbound: A Fable for America's Future (1986)
• Green Development: Integrating Ecology and Real Estate (1998)
• Factor 4: Doubling Wealth – Halving Resource Use and Least Cost Energy with Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker (1998)
• Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution (1999)
• Climate Capitalism: Capitalism in the Age of Climate Change (2011)
• The Way Out: Kickstarting Capitalism to Save Our Economic Ass (2012)
• Creating a Lean and Green Business System: Techniques for Improving Profits and Sustainability (2013)
• A Finer Future: Creating an Economy in Service to Life with Stewart Wallis, Anders Wijkman, and John B. Fullerton (2018)

Lovins has also written articles for the Unreasonable Group's online hub, which focuses on social entrepreneurship.