To read my blog, go to Words & Music by Alan AtKisson
Thank you for visiting my website.
I am a writer and composer — books, articles, poetry, song lyrics, music.
For fun, I am an amateur artist, working in multi-media, painting and sculpture.
With nearly 40 years of experience working on sustainability and systems change, I also lecture on those topics. I advise organisations, institutions, governments, or individual leaders, when asked. Note that I work only as a volunteer, on issues that I care about, and I do not request or accept payment for my contribution.
If you want to know more about my background, see the short profile below. If you want more details, see the detailed professional biography (link below the profile).
Or just feel free to explore my site. You can write to me directly by using the Contact tab, or look me up on social media: LinkedIn, Substack, BlueSky, Facebook, Instagram.
I look forward to hearing from you!
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Alan AtKisson – A Professional Profile
Alan has been working in leadership and advisory positions since 1988 on topics related to sustainability, sustainable development, economic and social policy, innovation, and leading systems change.
Alan was formerly CEO of the intergovernmental Global Water Partnership, and he served six years as a senior official in the Swedish government, in the role of Director (“Avdelningschef”) at the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).
Alan is also a former adviser to the United Nations Secretariat (and other UN agencies); to the President of the European Commission; and to a wide variety of governments at the national, regional, and local level. For many years he worked as a strategic consultant, and his clients included many global corporations and international NGOs. He is a dual citizen of Sweden and the United States.
Alan is the author of eight books, and he has also released six albums of original music as a singer, songwriter and guitarist.
Alan has worked in over 50 countries and has trained hundreds of officials in the principles and practice of sustainability and sustainable development. He has been recognised as a pioneer in sustainability for the work he did in applying a systems-based approach to city planning, education and training, economic policy development, and business management. Alan was inducted into the International Sustainability Hall of Fame in 2013.
At Sida, Alan was responsible for directing Swedish development aid for programs related to mobilising investment capital with financial guarantees, strengthening civil society, advancing scientific research relevant to development issues, and building institutional capacity, as well as fostering innovation for sustainable development throughout the agency. In this position, he acted as a deputy to the Director-General, participating in the overall leadership of the agency and often representing the Government of Sweden in a diplomatic capacity at international fora, such as those convened by the World Bank and the United Nations.
Alan’s professional history has followed the history of sustainable development itself. In 1988, he began editing one of the first journals on sustainability and cultural change, In Context, just one year after the United Nations launched the concept in a groundbreaking report (“Our Common Future”, 1987). In 1990, Alan co-founded one of the first city-based sustainability planning initiatives (Sustainable Seattle), which introduced the concept of sustainability indicators and was copied in cities around the world.
In 1992, he founded one of the world’s first sustainability consultancies, AtKisson Group, and began providing strategic advice to global clients in business, government, the non-profit sector and the United Nations. Tools and methods he developed along the way have spread globally, including the Sustainability Compass and the VISIS Method for strategic planning in a sustainability context.
Alan has also served as chair or chief executive officer for several other organisations, including an economic policy think-tank developing new measures of well-being (Redefining Progress), a global NGO focused on environmental and social ethics (Earth Charter International), an international network of sustainability and systems researchers (aka the Balaton Group), and a multi-nation intergovernmental partnership promoting global water security (Global Water Partnership).
Alan is currently working on “Gaia’s Dreams: An Optimist’s Guide to Creating Positive Futures,” the third and final book in his “Optimist Trilogy” (expected to be completed in 2026). The series began with his environmental bestseller Believing Cassandra (1999, revised 2012) and continued with The Sustainability Transformation (2012). Alan is also the author of Sustainability is for Everyone (2014, revised 2017), a small, widely read book designed to introduce and demystify the topic for people of all ages and backgrounds. He has also published two books of poetry, an essay collection, and a book on organisational change with the German coaching expert Axel Klimek (Parachuting Cats into Borneo, 2017). Many of his books, published in English, have also been translated into other languages.
His personal interests run widely. While continuing to speak and write on sustainability and public affairs for professional audiences (again, at his blog and on Substack), Alan also writes poetry, fiction, essays and criticism. As a songwriter, he is known for mixing music into his presentations, and his songs have been featured and used in public settings by both the United Nations and the European Commission. His musical albums cover a wide range of styles and are available on all streaming services. As an amateur artist, Alan also enjoys painting and sculpting, often making use of scrap, found objects, and the natural landscape.
Alan is available on a limited (and strictly voluntary) basis to speak, or to advise on strategic and leadership-related matters. Please use the Contact tab to send him an inquiry via email. You can also follow or contact him via LinkedIn. You can follow his other writing, music, and art on Facebook or Instagram.
For more information about Alan’s work and contributions, please see his detailed professional biography.
For information about Alan’s books and writing, click here >>
For information about Alan’s music, albums and songs, click here >>
Alan AtKisson 