Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn is a public intellectual and renowned China expert. He was awarded the“China Reform Friendship Medal”by President Xi Jinping on the 40th anniversary of China's historic reform and opening up (December 2018). The medal, China's highest award, honors 10 foreigners who contributed to China over the four decades; five are living; Dr. Kuhn is one of two Americans. For 30 years, Dr. Kuhn, with his long-time partner, Adam Zhu, has worked with China's leaders and advised the Chinese government. He is a commentator on CNN, BBC, CCTV, CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox Business, and a columnist in South China Morning Post and China Daily. He is the author of over 30 books, including How China's Leaders Think (featuring President Xi Jinping) and The Man Who Changed China: The Life and Legacy of Jiang Zemin (China's best-selling book of 2005). He is the host and co-producer of Closer to China with R.L.Kuhn (CGTN) on China politics, econom-ics, society and foreign affairs. He is an international corporate strategist and investment banker; chairman of The Kuhn Foundation; and creator/writer/host of Closer To Truth, the long-running PBS / public TV series on science and philoso-phy. He has a Ph.D. in anatomy/brain research (UCLA) and an MBA (MIT).