Alexander Laszlo (scientist)
Encyclopedia
Alexander Laszlo an American systems scientist, known as co-founder and President of Syntony Quest and former Director of the Doctoral Program in Management at the Graduate School of Business Administration & Leadership (EGADE
-ITESM), Mexico. He is also President-Elect of the International Society for the Systems Sciences
.
, born in Fribourg
, Switzerland
, received a BA from Haverford College
, with a major in International and Comparative Political Science and a minor in Human Physiology. At the University of Pennsylvania
he received his MA in History and Sociology of Science, and a PhD in the interdisciplinary field of Science and Technology Policy.
He has been faculty member of both the MBA in Sustainable Business at Bainbridge Graduate Institute
and the MBA in Sustainable Management at the Presidio School of Management
since the first year of operation of each program. Laszlo now serves as Adjunct Faculty in the MBA in Sustainable Entrepreneurship program of the Green MBA at Dominican University
, in the Leadership of Sustainable Systems program at both the Master’s and Doctoral levels at Saybrook Graduate School & Research Center, and on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Center for Advanced Study at the Giordano Bruno GlobalShift University.
He has worked for the UNESCO
Regional Office for Science & Technology for Europe, the Italian Electric Power Agency, and the Office of Postsecondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education. He has held visiting appointments with the London School of Economics
and the European University Institute
, and has been named a Level I Member of the National Research Academy of Mexico (SNI).
He is on the Editorial Boards of Systems Research & Behavioral Science, World Futures, and Organisational Transformation & Social Change. An active member of several systems science
societies, among them Co-Chair of Evolutionary Development SIG at International Society for the Systems Sciences
(ISSS) , Alexander Laszlo is author of over fifty journal, book, and encyclopedia publications, with A Field Guide for Evolutionary Leaders forthcoming.
Alexander Laszlo is the recipient of the Gertrude Albert Heller Award, the Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award, as well as of the Förderpreis Akademischer Klub award of the University of St. Gallen
, Switzerland, for work in social innovation and sustainable development, and finalist for the 2003 Beyond Gray Pinstripes award of the World Resources Institute
and the Aspen Institute
for educational work in sustainable business.
He is also Head Instructor of the Dojang At Occidental (the DAO) with over 25 years of experience. He holds a 4th Degree Black Belt in Chung Do Kwan
style of Tae Kwon Do and a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Shotokan
style of Karate
.
, collaboration
, and systems thinking
at a variety of MBA and Doctoral programs internationally.
EGADE
EGADE Business School is the Graduate School of Business at ITESM , a university system with 33 campuses in 26 cities in Mexico.EGADE Business School was created more than 30 years ago in Monterrey, 180 miles south of the...
-ITESM), Mexico. He is also President-Elect of the International Society for the Systems Sciences
International Society for the Systems Sciences
The International Society for the Systems Sciences is a world-wide organization for systems sciences.- Overview :The initial purpose of the society was "to encourage the development of theoretical systems which are applicable to more than one of the traditional departments of knowledge."The idea...
.
Biography
Alexander Laszlo, son of Ervin LászlóErvin László
Ervin László is a Hungarian philosopher of science, systems theorist, integral theorist, originally a classical pianist. He has published about 75 books and over 400 papers, and is editor of World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution...
, born in Fribourg
Fribourg
Fribourg is the capital of the Swiss canton of Fribourg and the district of Sarine. It is located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss plateau, and is an important economic, administrative and educational center on the cultural border between German and French Switzerland...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, received a BA from Haverford College
Haverford College
Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia...
, with a major in International and Comparative Political Science and a minor in Human Physiology. At the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
he received his MA in History and Sociology of Science, and a PhD in the interdisciplinary field of Science and Technology Policy.
He has been faculty member of both the MBA in Sustainable Business at Bainbridge Graduate Institute
Bainbridge Graduate Institute
The Bainbridge Graduate Institute is based in Bainbridge Island, Washington and Seattle, Washington. BGI offers an MBA in Sustainable Business, an MBA in Sustainable Systems and a Certificate in Sustainable Business. BGI's unique and pioneering curriculum infuses social- and...
and the MBA in Sustainable Management at the Presidio School of Management
Presidio School of Management
Presidio Graduate School is a higher-education institution based in San Francisco, California, offering graduate level programs in sustainable management, including those for MBA, MPA, and Executive Education...
since the first year of operation of each program. Laszlo now serves as Adjunct Faculty in the MBA in Sustainable Entrepreneurship program of the Green MBA at Dominican University
Dominican University
Dominican University may refer to:* Dominican University of California, an independent university of Catholic heritage located 12 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge in Marin County, California...
, in the Leadership of Sustainable Systems program at both the Master’s and Doctoral levels at Saybrook Graduate School & Research Center, and on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Center for Advanced Study at the Giordano Bruno GlobalShift University.
He has worked for the UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
Regional Office for Science & Technology for Europe, the Italian Electric Power Agency, and the Office of Postsecondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education. He has held visiting appointments with the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
and the European University Institute
European University Institute
The European University Institute ' in Florence is an international postgraduate and post-doctoral teaching and research institute established by European Union member states to contribute to cultural and scientific development in the social sciences, in a European perspective...
, and has been named a Level I Member of the National Research Academy of Mexico (SNI).
He is on the Editorial Boards of Systems Research & Behavioral Science, World Futures, and Organisational Transformation & Social Change. An active member of several systems science
Systems science
Systems science is an interdisciplinary field of science that studies the nature of complex systems in nature, society, and science. It aims to develop interdisciplinary foundations, which are applicable in a variety of areas, such as engineering, biology, medicine and social sciences.Systems...
societies, among them Co-Chair of Evolutionary Development SIG at International Society for the Systems Sciences
International Society for the Systems Sciences
The International Society for the Systems Sciences is a world-wide organization for systems sciences.- Overview :The initial purpose of the society was "to encourage the development of theoretical systems which are applicable to more than one of the traditional departments of knowledge."The idea...
(ISSS) , Alexander Laszlo is author of over fifty journal, book, and encyclopedia publications, with A Field Guide for Evolutionary Leaders forthcoming.
Alexander Laszlo is the recipient of the Gertrude Albert Heller Award, the Sir Geoffrey Vickers Memorial Award, as well as of the Förderpreis Akademischer Klub award of the University of St. Gallen
University of St. Gallen
The University of St. Gallen is a public research university located in St. Gallen, Switzerland. It is specialized in the fields of business administration, economics, law, and international affairs. The University of St. Gallen is also known as HSG, which is an abbreviation of its former German...
, Switzerland, for work in social innovation and sustainable development, and finalist for the 2003 Beyond Gray Pinstripes award of the World Resources Institute
World Resources Institute
The World Resources Institute is an environmental think tank founded in 1982 based in Washington, D.C. in the United States.WRI is an independent, non-partisan and nonprofit organization with a staff of more than 100 scientists, economists, policy experts, business analysts, statistical analysts,...
and the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
for educational work in sustainable business.
He is also Head Instructor of the Dojang At Occidental (the DAO) with over 25 years of experience. He holds a 4th Degree Black Belt in Chung Do Kwan
Chung Do Kwan
Chung Do Kwan, created by Won Kuk Lee in 1944, is the first of nine schools or kwan teaching what came to be known as taekwondo. This style of Tae Kwon Do is known for its overall power and emphasis on kicks to the head.-Founding:...
style of Tae Kwon Do and a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Shotokan
Shotokan
is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi and his son Gigo Funakoshi . Gichin was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing karate through a series of public demonstrations, and by promoting the development of university karate clubs, including...
style of Karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
.
Work
Laszlo applies in his research, teachings and practice systems thinking, policy analysis, and technology assessment to issues of individual and collective empowerment, and community-building activities on the design and implementation of evolutionary pathways for self-directed sustainability. Laszlo teaches on evolutionary leadershipLeadership
Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task". Other in-depth definitions of leadership have also emerged.-Theories:...
, collaboration
Collaboration
Collaboration is working together to achieve a goal. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, — for example, an intriguing endeavor that is creative in nature—by sharing...
, and systems thinking
Systems thinking
Systems thinking is the process of understanding how things influence one another within a whole. In nature, systems thinking examples include ecosystems in which various elements such as air, water, movement, plants, and animals work together to survive or perish...
at a variety of MBA and Doctoral programs internationally.
Publications
(selected sample)- "The systems sciences in service of humanity" (with E. Laszlo). In D.M.K. Al Gobaisi (Ed.), The encyclopedia of life support systems: Water, energy, environment, food & agriculture. 68 vols. London: EOLSS, 2003.
- World Futures 59(8) December 2003. Special Issue: "Evolutionary Development." Guest Co-Editor.
- "The epistemological foundations of Evolutionary Systems Design." Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 18, 2001. pp. 307–321.
- "Systems theories: Their origins, foundations, and development" (with S. Krippner). In J.S. Jordan (Ed.), Systems theories and a priori aspects of perception. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science, 1998. Ch. 3, pp. 47–74.
- "Humanistic and systems sciences: The birth of a third culture" (with E. Laszlo). Pluriverso, 3(1), April 1998. pp. 108–121.
- "The contribution of the systems sciences to the humanities" (with E. Laszlo). Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 14(1), April 1997. pp. 5–19.
External links
- Syntony Quest, a social profit educational organization.
- Giordano Bruno Global Shift University