John Kirton

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John James Kirton (born 1948)^[1] is professor emeritus of political science and the director and founder of the G7 Research Group, director and founder of the G20 Research Group, founder and co-director (with James Orbinski) of the Global Health Diplomacy Program, and founder and co-founder (with Marina Larionova of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration) of the BRICS Research Group, based at University of Trinity College in the University of Toronto.

He received his B.A. in Political Science in 1971 from the University of Toronto, his M.A. in International Affairs in 1973 from Carleton University, and his Ph.D. in International Studies in 1977 from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

He specializes in Canadian foreign policy, the G7, G8, G20, BRICS and global governance, global health governance, and trade and the environment.

As a scholar of Canadian foreign policy, Kirton pioneered the complex neo-realist theory of Canada's emergence as a principal power in the world through his major books, Canada as a Principal Power (co-written with David Dewitt) and Canadian Foreign Policy in a Changing World.

In the field of trade and environment, Kirton led the multinational, multidisciplinary team that developed an analytical framework for assessing the environmental effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and identified the many ways in which the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, North America's first regional organization of consequence, enhanced ecological quality throughout the region and beyond. He has also served as a member of Canada's National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy.

The author or editor of more than 35 books, Kirton is the editor of the Global Governance book series as well as co-editor (with Miranda Schreurs) of the Global Environmental Governance book series published by Routledge Publishing; he was also co-editor (with Michele Fratianni and Paolo Savona) of the Global Finance series published by Ashgate Publishing. He is co-editor of several publications on the G7 and G20 and also a series on "Health: A Political Choice" published by GT Media.

He is active in various volunteer activities, and serves on the board of the NATO Council of Canada (formerly The Atlantic Council of Canada) and the Empire Club of Canada. He was a member of the board of the Couchiching Institute on Public Affairs for many years until 2013. He continues to play an advisory role for Couchiching events which are now hosted by the Canadian International Council.