Frederic Vester

Frederic Vester(November 23, 1925 – November 2, 2003) was a Germanbiochemist,and an expert in the field ofecology.

Biography

Vester was born inSaarbrücken,and studiedchemistryat the universities ofMainz,ParisandHamburg.From 1955 to 1957, he was postdoctoral fellow atYale University,andCambridge.From 1957 to 1966 he worked atSaarland University,Saarbrücken,and from 1969 he worked inMunich,first at theMax Planck Institute.In 1970 he founded the private Munich-basedFrederic Vester Studiengruppe für Biologie und Umwelt GmbH( "Frederic Vester Study Group for Biology and Environment, Ltd.), renamedFrederic Vester GmbH( "Frederic Vester, Ltd." ) after his death.

From 1982 to 1989 he was aprofessorat theBundeswehr University Munich,and from 1989 to 1991 he was Professor forApplied Economicsat theHochschule St. Gallen,Switzerland.Vester's ideas influenced the formation of theenvironmental movementand theGreen Partyin Germany. He was a member of theClub of Rome.He was married to Anne Vester. The couple had three children and six grandchildren. He died in Munich.

Work

Networked thinking

Vester was known as pioneer of networked thinking, a combination ofcyberneticandsystemicideas andcomplexity.Central ideas of network thinking include viewing a system as a network of interrelated effects, leading toemergentbehavior of the system as a whole. These networks can be described by using protocols, mathematical networks, computer software, so that even someone with the most basic understanding of networks will see relations, including positive and negativefeedback loops.Simulationsof systemic networks can help to decide the long-term effects ofsingular measures.

Sensitivity Model

Vester'sSensitivity Modelcombines these ideas, and has been used since the 1980s in studies byFord,UNESCOand other organizations.

Publications

Most of Vesters books were published in German as well as in other languages, though seldom in English. A list of his works includes:

• 1976,Ballungsgebiete in der Krise(Urban Systems in Crisis)
• 1979,Das Überlebensprogramm(Plan for Survival)
• 1982,Das kybernetische Zeitalter(The Cybernetic Age)
• 1985,Ein Baum ist mehr als ein Baum(A Tree is More than a Tree)
• 1990,Leitmotiv vernetztes Denken(Key Themes of Networked Thinking)
• 1991,Ausfahrt Zukunft: Strategien für den Verkehr von morgen(Gateway Future: Strategies for the Transportation of Tomorrow)
• 1999,Crashtest Mobilität(Crash Test Mobility)
• 2002,Aufmerksamkeit im Unterricht(Attentiveness in the Classroom)
• 2002,Neuland des Denkens(Uncharted Territory of Thought)
• 2002,Denken, Lernen, Vergessen(Thinking, Learning, Forgetting)
• 2002,Phänomen Stress(Phenomenon Stress)
• 2002,Unsere Welt - ein vernetztes System(Our World - A Networked System)
• 2007,The Art of interconnected Thinking. Ideas and Tools for Tackling Complexity(MCB)ISBN3-939314-05-6

Vester is also the author of the software toolSensitivity modeland of several cybernetic games:

• 1997Ecopolicy – das kybernetische Strategiespiel(Ecopolicy - The Cybernetic Strategy Game)
• 1980/1996Ökolopoly. Ein kybernetisches Umweltspiel(Ecopoly - A Cybernetic Environment Game)

External links

• Frederic Vesterin theGerman National Librarycatalogue
• Professional Biography of Dr. Vester(English)
• Frederic Vester in theSaarländischen BiografienArchived2011-07-19 at theWayback Machine(German)