Luminary: Willis Harman

Luminary: Willis Harman

Willis Harman was a distinguished futurist, author, and social scientist, known for his research and writings analyzing the societal transition of the last quarter-century.

Willis served as president of the Institute of Noetic Sciences from 1975-1997. He was also founding director of the World Business Academy, a worldwide network of business executives and entrepreneurs concerned with implementing the "new paradigm" in business. Prior to these activities, Willis was a futurist at SRI International, involved in strategic planning with emphasis on the long-term consequences of present decisions. He was professor emeritus of electrical engineering and economic systems at Stanford University.

He was the author of many books, including New Metaphysical Foundations of Modern Science, Global Mind Change: The Promise of the Last Years of the 20th Century, and Creative Work: The Constructive Role of Business in a Transforming Society (with John Hormann).

Willis was a reserve officer on active duty in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was stationed at Pearl Harbor during the time of the attack. He served on numerous technical and advisory boards in the course of his life. He was a member of the Board of Regents of the University of California from 1980-1990.

I could never have been persuaded, in my early years, that growing old can be thoroughly delightful. But in truth it is, every moment of it. It's fun to realize that at some deep level in ourselves, we choose to age and die, and to watch the process with as much joy and fascination as a new father might delight in watching the birth of his child. It becomes more obvious each day that I am merely a part of the Whole, that the deepest pleasure in life is serving that Whole, and that subtle and manifold are the ways we can discover that end. —Willis W. Harman