Michael Thompson
Guest Emeritus Research Scholar
Equity and Justice Research Group
Population and Just Societies Program
Biography
Originally a professional soldier, Michael Thompson studied anthropology (first degree and PhD at University College London, B.Litt at Oxford) whi9le also following a career as a Himalayan Mountaineer. (Annapurna South Face 1970, Everest Southwest Face 1975). His early research on how something second-hand becomes an antique (Rubbish Theory, 1979, Oxford University Press) led to work on the "energy tribes" (in various western think tanks), on risk, on Himalayan deforestation and sustainable development, on household product development (in Unilever), on global climate change, on technology and development, and on what might be called "the even newer Institutionalism" (e.g., Cultural Theory, co-authored with Richard Ellis and Aaron Wildvasky, 1990, West View).Dr. Thompson is a Fellow at the James Marin Institute for Science and Civilization, University of Oxford and a Senior Researcher at the Stein Rokkan Centre for Social Research, University of Bergen, Norway. At IIASA he is affiliated with the Risk and Resilience (RISK) Program.
Last update: 02 MAY 2016
Publications
Thompson, M. (2002). Man and nature as a single but complex system. In: Encyclopedia of Global Environmental Change. Eds. Munn, T., John Wiley & Sons Inc.: Vol. 5: Social and Economic Dimensions of Global Environmental Change. ISBN 0-471-97796-9
Ney, S. & Thompson, M. (1999). Consulting the frogs: The normative implications of cultural theory. In: Cultural Theory as Political Science. Eds. Thompson, M., Grendstad, G., & Selle, P., London: Routledge.
Thompson, M., Grendstad, G., & Selle, P. (1999). Cultural Theory as Political Science. London: Routledge. ISBN 9780415862714
Rayner, S., Malone, E.L., & Thompson, M. (1999). Equity issues and integrated assessment. In: Fair Weather? Equity Concerns in Climate Change. Eds. Toth, F.L., pp. 11-43 London, UK: Earthscan Publications Ltd..
Schwarz, M. & Thompson, M. (1999). Human choice and climate change: Introducing the reflexive policymaker and the responsive citizen. In: Major Shifts in Societal Trends and Their Impact on Climate Change. Eds. Slob, A.F.L. & Hoorn, T.M.M. van, Technology and Policy: TNO Institute of Strategy.