Natural Hazards Observer
| November 2006 | Volume XXXI | Number 2 |
Gilbert Fowler White
1911 – 2006
“The world is a better place for having had Gilbert in its midst. Gilbert was that rare combination—a distinguished scientist and an outstanding humanitarian committed to translating scientific evidence into policy and programs to better people’s lives. His was a life to celebrate.”
—Jane Menken and Richard Jessor
Gilbert F. White, known to many as founder of the Natural Hazards Center, the father of floodplain management, and a leader in natural hazards research and the world environmental movement, died on October 5, 2006, at his home in Boulder, Colorado. He was 94.
A native of Hyde Park in Chicago, Illinois, White received undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees in geography from the University of Chicago and eight honorary degrees, the most recent one from the University of Colorado this past spring. His landmark work, which began with his 1942 dissertation Human Adjustment to Floods, challenged the notion that natural hazards are best addressed by engineering solutions. Instead, he argued that the havoc wrought by floods and other natural disasters may be better avoided by modifying human behavior. He advocated, where feasible, adaptation to or accommodation of flood hazards rather than the structural solutions that dominated policy in the early twentieth century. White promoted understanding, respect, and protection of natural resources and the natural order, including inevitable extremes. In a word, he championed stewardship—preserving nature and promoting sustainable use and husbandry of the natural resources of the earth. While White’s ideas were initially greeted with controversy, he was a persistent advocate. After six decades, his proposals for floodplain management and flood insurance reform have won widespread acceptance.
The underlying notion that humans should adjust to their environment, coupled with a deep commitment to improving human welfare through social policy, guided White’s career. A quiet leader, his work encompassed not only floods and other natural hazards, but water management in developing countries, global environmental change, geographic education, and international cooperation on water systems, including in the Middle East and the Mekong and Nile river basins.
Most recently, White was Gustavson Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Geography at the University of Colorado (CU) at Boulder, a position he held since 1980. From 1970 to 1978, he was a professor of geography and the director of the Institute of Behavioral Science at CU, and, in 1976, he founded the Natural Hazards Center, which he directed from 1976 to 1984 and again from 1992 to 1994. Prior to joining CU, White served in the New Deal administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt, where, among other things, he reviewed proposed natural resources legislation and presented summaries to the president; was president of Haverford College; and was professor and chair of the Geography Department at the University of Chicago.
Reflecting his commitment to national and international cooperation, White served on numerous professional and scientific committees and advisory groups for organizations such as the National Research Council, the United Nations, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Among numerous awards, he won the Association of American Geographers’ Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Medal of Science (the nation’s highest scientific honor), the National Academy of Sciences’ Public Welfare Medal, and the National Geographic Society’s Hubbard Medal. Other awards and honors include the UNESCO-GARD leadership award in disaster reduction, the Volvo Environmental Prize, and the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Cosmos Club.
In 1942, as a conscientious objector to military service, White joined the American Friends Service Committee, aiding refugees in France. He was interned in Baden-Baden, Germany, until 1944 when he was allowed to return to the United States. Shortly after his return, he married Anne Elizabeth Underwood, who worked with him on many research projects, and together they raised three children. She died in 1989.
White is survived by his second wife and long-time friend, Claire Sheridan; his children William White, Mary White, and Frances Chapin; stepchildren Monika and Daniel Profitt; and four grandchildren. He is also survived, in many respects, by thousands of friends, former students, colleagues, and others who drew inspiration from his wisdom, dedication, and remarkable kindness. We, and the planet, are all better for having known him. Additional information about White can be found at www.colorado.edu/hazards/gfw/.
Donations in White’s memory may be made to the Gilbert F. White Graduate Fellowship Endowment. Checks should be made payable to the CU Foundation and sent to the Natural Hazards Center, 482 UCB, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0482.