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MEDIA CENTER Peter J. Donaldson Appointed President of the Population Council
NEW YORK and MEXICO CITY (11 January 2005) — The Population Council today named Peter J. Donaldson, Ph.D., president of the organization, following a vote at its Board of Trustees meeting in Mexico City on Monday. Donaldson, 60, succeeds Linda Martin, who stepped down in July 2004. He has been acting president of the global research organization for the past seven months. In making the announcement, Rodney B. Wagner, chairman of the Board of Trustees, said, "Peter brings not only excellent professional qualifications, but extraordinary energy and enthusiasm for the Population Council and its mission, work, and staff." Donaldson holds a Ph.D. in sociology from Brown University. He earned his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Fordham University. His first postdoctoral employment was with the Population Council as a staff associate in Thailand (1973–75) and a representative in South Korea (1975–77). He then spent eight years at Family Health International in North Carolina, where he served ultimately as director of development and government relations. From 1985 to 1989, Donaldson was director of the Committee on Population of the National Research Council. In 1989 he returned to the Population Council to become a senior associate and regional director for South and East Asia, once again located in Thailand. He then served for nine years as the chief executive officer of the Washington, DC–based Population Reference Bureau. He rejoined the Population Council in May 2003 as vice president of the organization’s International Programs Division. As president, he will lead a staff of 575 people from 38 nations who are engaged in biomedical, social science, and public health research in 70 countries. In addition to his management and leadership responsibilities, Donaldson has engaged in numerous professional activities, including serving on the board of directors of the Population Association of America and on the council of the population section of the American Sociological Association. He is a member of the advisory committee of the Institute of Population and Social Research, Mahidol University, Bangkok. He is the author, co-author, or editor of six books and more than 60 scientific and popular articles on population, development, Asian affairs, and other issues. The Population Council is an international, nonprofit, nongovernmental research organization that seeks to improve the well-being and reproductive health of current and future generations around the world and to help achieve a humane, equitable, and sustainable balance between people and resources. The Council conducts biomedical, social science, and public health research and helps build research capacities in developing countries. Established in 1952, the Council is governed by an international board of trustees. Its New York headquarters supports a global network of regional and country offices. ### Media contacts
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