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Debora Hammond
Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies

Debora Hammond

B.A. History
Stanford University
1974

M.A. History of Science
University of California
at Berkeley
1991

Ph.D. History of Science
University of California
at Berkeley
1997

Debora Hammond served as the 2005-2006 President of the International Society for the Systems Sciences and hosted the 50th anniversary conference at Sonoma State University,
July 9-14, 2006 http://isss.org/world/conferences/sonoma2006

Dr. Hammond joined the Hutchins faculty in the fall of 1997. In addition to teaching courses in the lower division integrated general education sequence, she has taught upper division seminars on such topics as The Global Food Web; Oikos: Ecology and Economics; Health and Healing; The Dharma of Complex Systems; and Technology, Ecology, and Society. She served as Provost of the Hutchins School from 2001-2004.

She writes, "Coming of age during the Vietnam War era, I struggled to avoid becoming a cog in the "system," and subsequently spent half of my graduate career studying "systems theory," exploring ways of thinking about complex systems that might support more participatory and inclusive forms of social organization."

The Science of SynthesisMy book on the history of systems thinking, The Science of Synthesis: Exploring the Social Implications of General Systems Theory (2003) documents a unique episode in the history of modern thought that remains relevant for our times. It examines the origins of systems thinking in such fields as engineering, management, organismic biology, cybernetics, information, ecology and social theory, and discusses the work of the founders of the Society for General Systems Theory, including Ludwig von Bertalanffy, Kenneth Boulding, Ralph Gerard, James Grier Miller, and Anatol Rapoport.

More information can be found through the University Press of Colorado.

Dr. Hammond finds solace and inspiration in the wilderness, which is reflected in her work on environmental philosophy and ethics. She believes that social justice depends upon our ability to find more harmonious ways of living with the natural world. The accompanying picture was taken on a kayaking trip down the Green River in Canyonlands National Park

 
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NorCal Earth Institute
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| Tel: (707) 664.2491 | Fax: (707) 664.4389 | 1801 East Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park, CA 94928
Last Updated: August 6, 2007