Bent Flyvbjerg

The First Annual
Martin Wachs Distinguished Lecture in Transportation
Tuesday, October 17, 5:15 p.m.
(Reception to follow.)
Learn about how to support the Lecture fund. (Download pledge form here.)

Topic: "Survival of the Unfittest: Why the worst megaprojects get built and how better policy and planning can stop it"

Presented by Bent Flyvbjerg
Professor of Planning Aalborg University, Denmark

At Wurster Hall Auditorium
University of California, Berkeley

Bent Flyvbjerg is Professor of Planning at Aalborg University, Denmark. He is Doctor of Technology (Dr.Techn.) from Aalborg University (1991) and holds the Ph.D. in Urban Geography and Planning from Aarhus University, Denmark (1985). He was twice a Visiting Fulbright Scholar to the USA, at the University of California at Los Angeles and Berkeley and at Harvard University.

Flyvbjerg's most recent books are Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of Ambition (Cambridge University Press, 2003), Making Social Science Matter (Cambridge University Press, 2001), and Rationality and Power: Democracy in Practice (The University of Chicago Press, 1998). His main research interest is urban policy and planning. He is currently conducting research on megaprojects, phronetic planning research, and the relationship between truth and lying in policy and planning. Flyvbjerg's research has been covered by Science, The Economist, The New York Times, the BBC, and other media. His books and articles have been translated into 17 languages.

About the Lectureship: Throughout his 35-year career at the University of California, Professor Martin Wachs has embodied the highest standards for academic research, remarkable personal integrity, and a legendary commitment to students. His inspired teaching has prepared hundreds of students to make substantial contributions as planning and policy professionals in local, state and federal arenas, and many doctoral students have followed in Prof. Wachs' path in accomplished academic careers.

Current and former students of Professor Wachs are establishing a lectureship to honor him upon his recent retirement. With a fundraising goal of $60,000, we aim to support an annual Fall lecture in honor of his contributions to education and research in transportation planning and policy. The lecture will be a yearly event that attracts innovative and provocative thinkers to address the most pressing issues in transportation. It will rotate between Berkeley and UCLA, the two U.C. campuses at which Professor Wachs taught. The inaugural lecture will be given October 17, 2006 at Wurster Hall, on the Berkeley campus.

Giving to the Lectureship:
To establish and sustain an annual lectureship reflecting the caliber of Professor Wachs' contribution to transportation, we invite you to support this fundraising initiative. Founding donations from individual and corporate sponsors are encouraged. We encourage individual donors to contribute generously and to use a multi-year pledge to maximize the impact of your contribution.

Download a mail-in pledge form HERE.

Make checks payable to: "UCTC - Martin Wachs Lecture Fund"
Mail donations to: University of California Transportation Center
Martin Wachs Lecture Fund
2614 Dwight Way
University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-1782