William C. Clark

William Clark is the Harvey Brooks Research Professor of International Science, Public Policy and Human Development at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Trained as an ecologist, his research focuses on sustainability science: understanding the interactions of human and environmental systems with a view toward advancing the goals of sustainable development. He is particularly interested in how institutional arrangements affect the linkage between knowledge and action in the sustainability arena. At Harvard, he co-directs the Sustainability Science Program. He is co-author of Pursuing sustainability: A guide to the science and practice, Adaptive environmental assessment and management, and Redesigning rural development; editor of the Carbon dioxide review; coeditor of Sustainable development of the biosphere, The earth transformed by human action, Learning to manage global environmental risks, Global Environmental Assessments and The global health system: Institutions in a time of transition; and co-chaired the US National Research Council’s study "Our Common Journey: A Transition Toward Sustainability." He serves on the editorial board of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Clark is a recipient of the MacArthur Prize, the Humboldt Prize, the Kennedy School’s Carballo Award for excellence in teaching, and the Harvard College Phi Beta Kappa Prize for Excellence in Teaching.