Lovins received an undergraduate degree in sociology and political science from Pitzer College in 1972, and a J.D. from Loyola Law School in 1975. A practicing attorney, Lovins helped establish the urban forestry and environmental education group California Conservation Project, and was their assistant director for about six years. She served as policy adviser for Friends of the Earth under David Brower. In 1982 she and Amory Lovins co-founded Rocky Mountain Institute in Snowmass, Colorado. They initially ran the research foundation out of their home and referred to it as a "think-and-do-tank." Hunter Lovins served as RMI's CEO for strategy until 2002. Lovins has taught at several universities including Dartmouth College, where she was a Henry R. Luce visiting professor, and the Bainbridge Graduate Institute's Pinchot University, which became Presidio Graduate School in 2016. In 2013, Hunter served as a mentor for Unreasonable at Sea, a technology business accelerator for social entrepreneurs seeking to scale their ventures in international markets, founded by Unreasonable Group, Semester at Sea, and Stanford University’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design. Lovins is a founding professor of the MBA in sustainability at Bard College, where she serves as a faculty member. She has addressed major gatherings such as the World Economic Forum, the United States Congress, and the World Summit on Sustainable Development. Lovins has also done consulting for citizens’ groups, governments, and corporations.
Awards and recognition
Hunter and Amory Lovins shared a Mitchell Prize in 1982 for their paper, "Electric Utilities: Key to Capitalizing the Energy Transition." In 1983, she and Amory Lovins were awarded the Right Livelihood Award for "pioneering soft energy paths for global security." She received a 1993 Nissan Award for an article on the Hypercar. The Lindbergh Foundation recognized her with the 1999 Lindbergh Award for "outstanding achievements in energy and environmental practice and policy." Lovins received a Leadership in Business Award at the Natural Business Conference in June 2001 for her work in the lifestyles of health and sustainability industry. She received Loyola Law School’s Alumni Association Board of Governors Recognition Award in 2000. The following year, she and her Natural Capitalism co-authors were recognized with a Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence for manufacturing research. In 2005 she received the Distinguished Alumni Award of Pitzer College. Time magazine featured Lovins in 2000 as one of their "Heroes for the Planet." Newsweek called her a "green-business icon" in 2008.
Personal life
In 1979, Hunter married Amory Lovins. The couple separated in 1989 and divorced in 1999.
Publications
Lovins co-authored the following books:
Energy/War, Breaking the Nuclear Link
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Least-Cost Energy: Solving the CO2 Problem
The First Nuclear World War: A Strategy for Preventing Nuclear Wars and the Spread of Nuclear Weapons
Energy Unbound: A Fable for America's Future
Green Development: Green Development: Integrating Ecology and Real Estate
