John Charles Kunich

John Charles Kunich is a retired Professor of Law, a part-time instructor in Political Science and Business, and a former Fulbright Senior Specialist, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. He earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School and a Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in environmental law from George Washington University School of Law, in addition to Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in biological science from the University of Illinois. He was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, where he became a lifelong fan of the Chicago Cubs.

Professor Kunich is the author or co-author of eight books and numerous major scholarly articles in the fields of environmental protection, law, decision-making, and leadership. He has twice testified before U.S. congressional committees as an expert witness on endangered species protection, and has been interviewed on national television and in national and regional news media many times.

He teaches courses in law, political science, environmental protection, philosophy, business, classical literature, and related subjects for Belmont Abbey College and, previously, at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. In addition to his teaching duties within the United States, Professor Kunich has served as a visiting professor at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, China, as well as Sichuan University in Chengdu, Jinan University in Guangzhou, and Jiaotong University in Xi'an. He has taught summer courses at the university level in China during seven separate years since 2012. He also taught at the Indian Law Institute in New Delhi as a specialist in international environmental and biodiversity law and policy, as part of his Fulbright work.

Professor Kunich has extensive experience in both the law and the science of environmental and natural resource protection. His unique combination of education and experience in the scientific and legal aspects of these complex problems enables him to write books of unusual insight and power. His three pathbreaking books on international environmental law focus in particular on optimal decision-making regarding endangered species, climate change, biodiversity loss, and habitat conservation. His "hotspots wager" and the accompanying "decision matrix" have been influential for years in this often controversial field. He is also an expert in constitutional law, especially First Amendment issues.

Professor Kunich is well known as a powerful, insightful, witty, and effective speaker. He has given presentations and participated in scholarly debates on more than 100 occasions at some of the world's most prestigious venues. He has spoken at such institutions as the Royal Geographical Society in London, the Oxford Round Table on International Trade and the Environment, and such law schools as Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, Columbia, University of Chicago, Duke, Berkeley, New York University, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, and dozens more.

A part-time poker player, Professor Kunich has competed in the World Series of Poker Main Event three times since 2006. He has appeared on the ESPN WSOP broadcasts several times because of his humorous costumes and eccentric antics at the poker tables. His poker nickname is "The Nutty Professor" for reasons that should be entirely obvious.

He is also a noted songwriter and playwright. He has written an entire musical play, "Marva!", including all music, lyrics, and script/libretto, dealing with the famed inner-city African-American educator Marva Collins.

Professor Kunich welcomes comments and questions from his readers. Readers may contact him via telephone: (423) 443-0520, or via e-mail: JohnCKunich@aol.com.