John M. Richardson (professor)
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John Martin Richardson, Jr. born on March 12, 1938, is an American academic who writes, lectures, and consults in applied systems analysis, international development, conflict-development linkages, and the sustainability and resilience of political-economic-social institutions. He served as visiting professor at the
Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY School) is an autonomous postgraduate school of the National University of Singapore (NUS), named after the late former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew. History The Lee Kuan Yew School of ...
and director of outreach and projects at Residential College 4 at the
National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...
. He was also professor emeritus of international development at the
School of International Service The School of International Service (SIS) is American University's school of advanced international study, covering areas such as international politics, international communication, international development, international economics, peace and c ...
at
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
.


Academic background

Richardson received his AB degree from Dartmouth College and PhD from the University of Minnesota. Prior to his appointment at NUS, Richardson held faculty appointments in political science and
systems engineering Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their enterprise life cycle, life cycles. At its core, systems engineering util ...
at the
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
and
Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...
.


System dynamics

He was a pioneer in the fields of global modeling and
system dynamics System dynamics (SD) is an approach to understanding the nonlinear behaviour of complex systems over time using stocks, flows, internal feedback loops, table functions and time delays. Overview System dynamics is a methodology and mathematical ...
under the auspices of the
Club of Rome The Club of Rome is a nonprofit, informal organization of intellectuals and business leaders whose goal is a critical discussion of pressing global issues. The Club of Rome was founded in 1968 at Accademia dei Lincei in Rome, Italy. It consists ...
, with work focusing on
sustainability Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
and population- resource-
environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...
interrelationships. In 1982 he was named by the Society for Computer Simulation as "one of the twenty most effective decision makers in the world". Dr. Richardson remains an ongoing contributor to the Hungary-based
Balaton Group The Balaton Group (The International Network of Resource Information Centers) is a global network of researchers and practitioners in fields related to systems and sustainability. The name "Balaton Group" refers to the Lake Balaton region of Hun ...
and in the mid-1980s he collaborated with the late
Donella Meadows Donella Hager "Dana" Meadows (March 13, 1941 – February 20, 2001) was an American environmental scientist, educator, and writer. She is best known as lead author of the books ''The Limits to Growth'' and '' Thinking In Systems: A Primer''. E ...
as systems advocates for
the Hunger Project The Hunger Project (THP), founded in 1977 with the stated goal of ending world hunger in 25 years, is an organization committed to the sustainable end of world hunger. It has ongoing programs in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, where it implemen ...
. In 2013, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the
System Dynamics Society The System Dynamics Society is an international, nonprofit organization formed in 1983. History The society was formed in 1983 through resolution passed by 120 delegates naming Jay Forrester as the first president. The activity of the society ...
. This was only the third such award in the society's 30-plus year history.


Academic work

As a scholar and author, he has been visiting and working in
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
since 1987, using the island's turbulent political-economic history as a lens to analyze broader
international development International development or global development is a broad concept denoting the idea that societies and countries have differing levels of economic or human development on an international scale. It is the basis for international classifications ...
and conflict dilemmas
''Paradise Poisoned''
his most recent book, culminates nearly twenty years of work in this arena. Parts of the book have been translated into
Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...
and Sinhala in order to reach a wider audience in Sri Lanka. He taught system dynamics modelling to undergraduate and graduate students at the
National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...
.


Resident faculty

Richardson pioneered the
American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
Resident Faculty Program when he lived in Anderson Hall from 2002 to 2011. During this period he was known for actively engaging students in the hall and across campus in their daily lives. Several times each semester he would invite students into his apartment for home-cooked meals and discussions of campus affairs, student life and affairs of the day. His weekly teas and late night study break sessions during final examinations were also popular. He adopted the moniker "Dorm Grandpop" and started
''blog''
In 2015–2018, he was a full-time resident fellow in the National University of Singapore’s Residential College Four.


Quotes

"When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened."
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Bibliography

* '' Partners in Development'' (1969) * '' Groping in the Dark: The First Decade of Global Modeling'' (1982), co-authored with
Donella Meadows Donella Hager "Dana" Meadows (March 13, 1941 – February 20, 2001) was an American environmental scientist, educator, and writer. She is best known as lead author of the books ''The Limits to Growth'' and '' Thinking In Systems: A Primer''. E ...
and Gerhart Bruckmann * '' Making it Happen: A Positive Guide to the Future'' (1982) * '' Ending Hunger: An Idea Whose Time has Come'' (1985), co-authored with
Donella Meadows Donella Hager "Dana" Meadows (March 13, 1941 – February 20, 2001) was an American environmental scientist, educator, and writer. She is best known as lead author of the books ''The Limits to Growth'' and '' Thinking In Systems: A Primer''. E ...
and Elizabeth Neeld * '' Breakthrough: New Global Thinking'' (1988), contributed a chapter * '' Democratization in South Asia: The First Fifty Years'' (1998) (co-edited by S.W.R. deA. Samarasinghe) * '' History and Politics - Millennial Perspectives: Essays in Honor of Kingsley de Silva'' (1999) * '' Paradise Poisoned: Learning About Conflict, Development and Terrorism from Sri Lanka’s Civil Wars'' (2005) * '' Lessons from the War: Consequences and Failures''. An edited abridgement of the three final chapters of Paradise Poisoned in Sinhala and Tamil. Sinhala edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. Ranjit Perera, translator and editor. Tamil edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. K. Ponnambalam, translator and editor. Colombo: Social Science Association of Sri Lanka, 2008. * '' Lessons from the War II: Path to the Crisis''. An edited abridgement of the initial three chapters of Paradise Poisoned in Sinhala and Tamil, with a new introduction. Sinhala edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. Ranjit Perera, translator and editor. Tamil edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. K. Ponnambalam, translator and editor. Colombo: Social Science Association of Sri Lanka, 2011. * '' Lessons from the War III: Years of Promise and Hope''. Edited abridgement of the chapter in Paradise Poisoned dealing with Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, with a new introduction. Sinhala edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. Ranjit Perera, translator and editor. Tamil edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. K. Ponnambalam, translator and editor. Colombo: Social Science Association of Sri Lanka, 2011. * '' Lessons from the War IV: Middle Path: Dudley Senanayake’s Imperfect Governance Strategy''. Edited abridgment of the chapters in Paradise Poisoned dealing with Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake. Sinhala edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. Ranjit Perera, translator and editor. Tamil edition prepared with the assistance of Mr. K. Ponnambalam, translator and editor. Colombo: Social Science Association of Sri Lanka, 2012.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, John M. American University faculty Dartmouth College alumni University of Minnesota alumni 1938 births Living people