Haub Law Professor Nicholas A. Robinson Honored with Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award

Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University Professor Nicholas A. Robinson was honored with Pace University’s prestigious Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing his dedication to teaching, service, and scholarship, and his significant contributions to and impact on the University community. A pioneering figure in environmental law, Professor Robinson has been a distinguished member of the faculty at Haub Law since 1978. The award was presented during the 2025 Faculty Recognition Ceremony, held in the company of esteemed colleagues and peers.

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This honor is among many that reflect Professor Robinson’s extraordinary legacy. In 2009, Pace University conferred the prestigious position of University Professor for the Environment on Professor Robinson for his significant contribution to scholarship in the field of environmental law, both in the USA and abroad. He also holds the title of inaugural Gilbert and Sarah Kerlin Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law Emeritus.

Professor Robinson is widely recognized in the U.S. and globally as a pioneer of modern environmental law. He began developing environmental law in 1969, when he was named to the Legal Advisory Committee of the President’s Council on Environmental Quality. Professor Robinson is Chair Emeritus of the IUCN World Commission on Environment Law, serving from 1996 to 2004, and responsible for many innovations including the launch of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law. He has engaged in drafting treaties and counseling different countries on preparation of environmental laws.

During his tenure at the Law School, Professor Robinson helped establish its environmental law programs, founded the environmental law review, launched the Pace Environmental Law Clinic, secured Pace’s membership in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and pioneered the first United Nation’s Environmental Diplomacy Practicum. His work and influence can be attributed to advancing the Law School’s premiere reputation as the top ranked Environmental Law Program in the nation and across the globe.

Professor Robinson is a prolific legal scholar with hundreds of books, chapters, law review and scholarly journal articles and citations to his credit on pressing topics including conservation, historic preservation, climate change, sustainable development, zoonosis, human rights, international environmental law and more. A collection of his work is preserved in the Nicholas A. Robinson Seminar Space dedicated at the Law School in 2024.

Professor Robinson has contributed greatly to public service at the local, state and international level, serving on dozens of boards and committees over his career. Demonstrating his impact in the field of Environmental Law, Professor Robinson has been honored with numerous awards and accolades. Two awards have also been created in his honor to celebrate outstanding achievement in the field of Environmental Law: the Nicholas Robinson Award for Distinguished Environmental Achievement, established at Haub Law in 2005, and the Nicholas Robinson Award for Excellence in Environmental Law, created by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Commission on Environmental Law in 2021.

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The Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes Professor Robinson’s extraordinary career and his unwavering dedication to excellence in the field of Environmental Law and the indelible impact he has had on Pace University as a whole.