A leading environmental and energy attorney, Dr. Mullikin has represented the United Nations, foreign governments, and Fortune 100 companies. His international work includes drafting chemical laws for the Republic of Moldova, assessing access-to-justice best practices for the Maldives, advising constitutional reforms in Sierra Leone, and leading a multinational team of 52 experts to develop seabed mining legislation for the Republic of Fiji. These assignments reflect both his legal expertise and his commitment to building resilient global environmental frameworks.

As an explorer and field researcher, Dr. Mullikin has summited mountains on every continent and logged certified SCUBA dives in all the world’s oceans, studying climate vulnerabilities, water systems, and fragile ecosystems firsthand. His work has earned him induction as a Fellow of the Explorers Club in New York and the Royal Geographical Society in London, and recognition as a National Geographic Expert. In 2024, he was awarded Honorary Membership in the Galápagos Foundation for his decades of environmental work in the Galápagos Islands and Amazon Basin.

A committed academic and thought leader, Dr. Mullikin has served as a Professor of Practice at the University of South Carolina, a Research Professor at Coastal Carolina University, and a Visiting Professor in the Galápagos Islands at Universidad San Francisco de Quito. His scholarship includes research on environmental management, global climate change, and the intersection of law, leadership, and sustainability. His academic contributions and service to education have been honored with the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Alumni Award, the University of South Carolina’s highest alumni recognition for humanitarian leadership, integrity, and service.

Dr. Mullikin retired as a Major General and former Commander of the South Carolina State Guard where he also served as the President of the State Guard Association of the United States. He served as Special Assistant to the Chief Prosecutor of Military Commissions during the prosecution of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other 9/11 conspirators, and earlier as a U.S. Army JAG officer and International Legal Officer. His many decorations include the U.S. Army Meritorious Service Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Global War on Terror Service Medal, multiple state and national Meritorious and Commendation Medals, and international Airborne parachutist wings from Germany, Serbia, Croatia, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Laos.

In recognition of his decades of service to the legal profession and to the rule of law, Dr. Mullikin received the prestigious South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice’s Lifetime Achievement Award in October 2025. Mullikin was also honored by the South Carolina Civil Rights Museum for “exemplary courage and service to mankind.”

A 6th Degree Black Belt in Karate, Dr. Mullikin is a member of the South Carolina Black Belt Hall of Fame, the United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame, and the International Martial Arts Hall of Fame (London). He was a Certified U.S. Army Master Fitness Trainer and Self-Defense Instructor, bringing the discipline and philosophy of martial arts into his leadership teaching and service ethos.

A respected leader in conservation and civic life, Dr. Mullikin served as Chairman of the South Carolina Floodwater Commission and has held leadership positions in numerous environmental and policy organizations. His service has been recognized with the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian honor, and with recognition in the U.S. Congressional Record for his leadership in flood mitigation and resilience planning. A sought-after speaker on environmental law, climate resilience, leadership, and public policy, Dr. Mullikin has delivered keynote addresses at major conferences across the United States and internationally, including Stanford Law School, Oxford University, the National Association of Environmental Professionals, and the Natural Resources and Coastal Futures International Seminar in Ecuador. In 2025, he served as commencement speaker for the Coastal Carolina University College of Science and Honors College, and delivered major keynotes for organizations ranging from
the National Wild Turkey Federation to the South Carolina Society of Professional Engineers.

Together with his wife, Virginia Ann, Dr. Mullikin was honored as a national “Civic Leader Parent of the Year” in 2019. They reside in Camden, South Carolina, and have four children and five grandchildren.

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