James Hill was born and spent his early adult life in Michigan's rural Upper Peninsula. Growing up in a small town within a one-hour drive of three of the five Great Lakes, he developed a love of northern Michigan that stayed with him, even after he left for college and then to Washington D.C. to pursue his other passion, politics. Working for the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, he developed a keen instinct for politics and political processes. He returned to Michigan as a university professor and a political consultant for several state and federal campaigns. Dr. Hill was a political science professor for over three decades, researching and publishing academic articles on environmental politics. Upon his retirement, he and his wife Kathy moved to the Chicago area. Hill holds a B. A. and Ph.D. from Michigan State University, an MPA from Harvard University, and a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School.