Sir James Wolfensohn | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Special Envoy of theQuartet on the Middle East | |
| In office 14 April 2005 – 30 March 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Tony Blair |
| President of the World Bank Group | |
| In office June 1, 1995 – May 31, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Ernest Stern (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Paul Wolfowitz |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James David Wolfensohn (1933-12-01)1 December 1933 |
| Died | 25 November 2020(2020-11-25) (aged 86) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Relations | Edward Botwinick (brother-in-law) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Sydney (BA,LLB) Harvard University (MBA) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Official website |
Sir James David WolfensohnKBE, AO (1 December 1933 – 25 November 2020) was an Australian-American lawyer, investment banker, and economist who served as the ninth president of theWorld Bank Group (1995–2005). During his tenure at the World Bank, he is credited with the focus on poverty alleviation and a rethink on development financing, earning him recognition as a banker to the world's poor. In his other roles, he is credited with actions that broughtChrysler Corporation back from the brink of bankruptcy, and also improving the finances of major United States cultural institutions, includingCarnegie Hall and theKennedy Center. He served two terms as President of the World Bank on the nomination of U.S. PresidentBill Clinton, and thereafter held various positions with charitable organizations and policy think-tanks including theBrookings Institution.
He was born inSydney, Australia, and was a graduate of theUniversity of Sydney andHarvard Business School; he was also an Olympicfencer. He worked for various companies in Britain and the United States before forming his own investment firm. Wolfensohn became an American citizen in 1980 and renounced his Australian citizenship, although he eventually regained it in 2010.
Wolfensohn was born on 1 December 1933 inSydney,New South Wales, Australia. His father Hyman, known as Bill, was born in London toAustrian-Jewish immigrants, while his mother Dora was born in Belgium to Polish parents.[1][2] His father was a "highly intelligent but failed businessman"[3] who had previously worked for theRothschild banking family. Wolfensohn's parents arrived in Australia in 1928. He was named afterJames Armand de Rothschild, his father's former employer, whose birthday he shared.[4] His mother sang with Australian radio and gave him piano lessons, instilling in him a love of the symphony. In high school, he was noted to have taken part in operas, including playing female roles inGilbert and Sullivan operettas.[5]
Wolfensohn grew up in a two-bedroom flat inEdgecliff. His father struggled financially, and in his autobiography,A Global Life, Wolfensohn described how monetary insecurity was a fact of life from childhood and explained that he was always looking for a cushion to protect himself from it.[4] Wolfensohn attended Woollahra Public School,[4] and thenSydney Boys High School. He entered theUniversity of Sydney at the age of 16, graduatingBachelor of Arts (BA) andBachelor of Laws (LLB). In 1959 he earned aMaster of Business Administration (MBA) fromHarvard Business School.[6][7] In his 2010 memoirs he revealed that he failed several university classes, including English, and was a "late developer".[8]
Wolfensohn was a member of the Australianfencing team at the1956 Summer Olympics inMelbourne, participating in the Men's TeamÉpée[9][10] and an officer in theRoyal Australian Air Force.[11]
Before attending Harvard, Wolfensohn was a lawyer in the Australian law firm of Allen, Allen & Hemsley in Sydney (nowAllens). Upon graduating from Harvard Business School, Wolfensohn worked briefly for Swiss cement giant Holderbank (nowHolcim).[12] He also worked for an air-conditioner company requiring him to travel across India, Nigeria, Greece, Mexico, Latin America, and other developing countries. He wrote in his memoir about the poverty and inequity, "The inequity was so striking that I could hardly absorb what was in front of me. I had known what to expect intellectually, but, the reality was a shock. It left an indelible mark that would influence my later life."[13]
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He then returned to Australia, where he worked for various banking institutions, including Darling & Co. In the late 1960s, he became a director of Darling's major shareholderJ. Henry Schroder & Co, aLondon-basedinvestment bank.[4] He was a senior executive in the London office before becoming managing director of the bank'sNew York City office from 1970 to 1976. He later became a senior executive atSalomon Brothers. In 1979, together withChrysler Corporation's then chief executive officerLee Iacocca and then President of the New York FedPaul A. Volcker, who later became Chairman of the Board of Governors of theFederal Reserve System, Wolfensohn helped orchestrate the rescue of Chrysler from the verge of bankruptcy.[14] In what has been described as the largest corporate bailout at that time, in addition to his banking skills he is noted to have played a role in smoothening a cultural rift betweenLee Iacocca and Japanese Bankers, who went on to invest more than $600 million in the company.[5]
In 1980, he became anaturalized citizen of theUnited States, after it was rumored that he was a candidate to succeedRobert McNamara as president of theWorld Bank. He renounced his Australian citizenship at this time.[15] He next established his own investment firm, James D. Wolfensohn, Inc., along with partners includingPaul Volcker. Upon accepting his nomination to serve as president of the World Bank in 1995, Wolfensohn divested of his ownership interest in James D. Wolfensohn, Inc. The firm was later bought byBankers Trust.[16] The firm had a diverse client which includedRalph Lauren Corporation andMercedes-Benz.[5]
During the 1980s and 1990s, he was the chairman of theCarnegie Hall and later of theKennedy Center. At both of these places, he is credited with stabilizing the cultural organizations' finances and managing their budget shortfalls. At the Kennedy Center he pushed for a shift in programming toward "crowd pleasing" programs includingAndrew Lloyd Webber'sPhantom of the Opera andCats. Clashes with this approach prompted staff like the artistic directorMarta Istomin to quit in 1990.[5]
In 2005, upon stepping down as president of the World Bank, he founded Wolfensohn & Company, LLC, a private firm that works with governments and large corporations doing business in emerging markets.[17] He was also the chairman of the International Advisory Board ofCitigroup.[16] In 2009, he became a member of the International Advisory Council of the Chinesesovereign wealth fundChina Investment Corporation.[18]
Wolfensohn became the ninth president of the World Bank on 1 July 1995 after he was nominated byU.S. PresidentBill Clinton. He was unanimously supported by the bank's board of executive directors for a second five-year term in 2000, becoming the third person to serve two terms in the position afterEugene R. Black andRobert McNamara. He visited more than 120 countries around the world during his term as president. Speaking of thePeople's Republic of China, he said, "China never borrowed less than $3 billion a year during my tenure. They were the most significant client". He believed that the People's Republic of China sought to obtain know-how in addition to money from the Bank, with the People's Republic going from a net borrower to holding over two and a half trillion in foreign exchange reserves.[19]
Wolfensohn is credited, with among other things, having been the first World Bank president to bring attention to the problem of corruption in the area of development financing.[20] His reforms during his time at the World Bank earned him recognition as a champion of the world's poor. He is credited for reforms at the World Bank, including decentralization, technology investments, and moves towards openness.[15] In June 1996, he wrote a memo that spot audits would occur after he established an in-house auditing staff at the World Bank.[21] His time at the Bank was also a period of shift from complex infrastructure projects in developing economies to social-sector led programs.[15] During this time, the World Bank became one of the largest funders of global primary education and health programs includingHIV/AIDS programs.[15] He also advanced debt release programs for many Africa and Latin American nations.[22]
He brought attention to contemporaryAfrica when he hosted the award-winning visual artistIbiyinka Alao during the show "Visions and Vignettes" presented by the World Bank Art Program.[23][24]
On 3 January 2005, Wolfensohn announced he would not seek a third term as president. During his term, theAlfalfa Club named him as their nominee forPresident of the United States in 2000 as part of a long-standing tradition, despite being constitutionally ineligible due to the natural-born citizen clause inArticle II of the United States Constitution.[25] He served as an advisor to theGrassroots Business Fund.[26]
In April 2005, Wolfensohn was appointed special envoy forGaza disengagement by theQuartet on the Middle East, a group of major powers and theUnited Nations promoting theIsraeli-Palestinian peace process.[27] He resigned after 11 months as special envoy when he understood the United States government to be undermining his efforts and firing his staff.[28]
According to him the major blame for the failure of his Middle East mission lay with him. "I feel that if anything, I was stupid for not reading the small print," he admitted. "I was never given the mandate to negotiate the peace."[29] Former British Prime Minister,Tony Blair, would succeed him in this role.[30]
In 2006, Wolfensohn founded the Wolfensohn Center for Development at theBrookings Institution, aWashington, D.C.–based think tank.[31] The centre examined how to implement, scale up, and sustain development interventions to solve key development challenges at a national, regional, and global level and strove to bridge the gap between development theorists and practitioners. Its projects focused on youth exclusion in the Middle East, large-scaleanti-poverty programs, reforms of global economic governance, and regional cooperation, particularly in Central Asia. The Center concluded work after five years.[32]
Wolfensohn was a trustee of theRockefeller Foundation, and also served as an honorary trustee of theBrookings Institution. He was a trustee and past chairman of the board of trustees of theInstitute for Advanced Study inPrinceton, New Jersey. He was chairman emeritus of theJohn F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and also of theCarnegie Hall in New York City. He was a member of the non-profit think tank the Council on Foreign Relations. In July 2008, Wolfensohn was selected as one of the inaugural fellows of theAustralian Institute of International Affairs. He served on the board of various charitable foundations, including the Wolfensohn Family Foundation.[33][34][35][17]
Between 1985 and 2015 Wolfensohn attended 27 conferences of theBilderberg Group, which rendered him one of the most frequent participants of the organization during this time period. He also attended meetings of theAspen Institute and theWorld Economic Forum. He was a one time a member of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group.[36] In 2004, Wolfensohn was the commencement speaker atBrandeis University.[37] Wolfensohn sat on the board ofEndeavor (non-profit).[34] He was a member of the Honorary Board of theInternational Paralympic Committee.[38]
Wolfensohn married Elaine Botwinick, sister of IT entrepreneurEdward Botwinick,[39] in 1961.[40] They had three children and seven grandchildren.[41] Botwinick died in August 2020,[40] three months before Wolfensohn's death.[5]
In New York City, he once found himself at aJerusalem Foundation lunch next toDorothy de Rothschild, widow of James. She could not tell him why his father suddenly had left Rothschild six decades earlier. But he was reassured that his father had been a "wonderful man".[42]
Wolfensohn began cello studies withJacqueline du Pré, a friend, at the age of 41 when she offered to teach him on the condition that he perform on his 50th birthday atCarnegie Hall inNew York City, which he did. He repeated the exercise on his 60th and 70th birthdays withYo-Yo Ma andBono. He continued to play and appeared, together with musician friends, at private events at Carnegie Hall and elsewhere.[4]
In October 2010, he regained his Australian citizenship, that he had renounced earlier.[43] Wolfensohn was a resident ofJackson Hole, Wyoming.[44]
Wolfensohn died on 25 November 2020 inManhattan of complications from pneumonia, aged 86, six days short of his 87th birthday.[5]
Wolfensohn received numerous awards throughout his life. He became an honorary officer of theOrder of Australia in 1987,[45] received the Golden Plate Award of theAmerican Academy of Achievement in 1993,[46] and anhonorary knighthood of theOrder of the British Empire in 1995 for his service to the arts.[5] TheUniversity of New South Wales conferred an honorary degree ofDoctor of Science on him in 2006, and he received the Award of Excellence from The International Center in New York.[17][47][48]
In 2006, Wolfensohn received theLeo Baeck Medal for his humanitarian work promoting tolerance and social justice.[49] In 2011, he was awarded the Golden Biatec Award, the highest award bestowed by Slovakia's Informal Economic Forum – Economic Club, for his contribution to addressing global priorities.[50] At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Wolfensohn was inducted into theOlympians for Life project.[51]
He was a member of both theAmerican Academy of Arts & Sciences[52] and theAmerican Philosophical Society.[53]
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| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Ernest Stern(acting) | President of the World Bank Group 1995–2005 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Special Envoy of theQuartet 2005–2006 | Vacant Title next held by Tony Blair |
