Delighted to reconnect with Alexandre Caldas yesterday.
Alex was a researcher at the OII during our early years, mainly working with a world leading economist, the late-Professor Paul David, during several years when he was at the OII. We met with another OII colleague in these early years, Professor Ralph Schroeder, who I first met at Brunel University, whose career moved to the OII and has continued to blossom over the years.
Alex, Ralph, and I got together for lunch at the OII’s new location in the Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities, where we snapped a photo while the sun was shining on the outdoor balcony. Alex and I also passed by the old home of the OII, where we were based during his tenure, at 1 St Giles, part of Balliol College. We all marveled at the success of the OII and University in finding such a fantastic new home while also feeling a sense of nostalgia around our old home base with its memorable blue door for entering the magic of the new department, in those early years.
Alex is on to new things after developing an amazing career, lately serving as a former director in the United Nations, where he chaired UN’s EOSOC, which used data analytics to develop early warnings. This is only one of many other UN leadership positions in global development and innovation. Currently he is pioneering work on new approaches to diplomacy and support for nations rocked by repeated disasters, creating a new organization in New York City to support the poorest nations and people in the world, which he is calling Kiplomacy: see https://kiplomacy.org/news/
You can find Alex at: https://www.alexandrecaldas.org/
The Old Home of the OII at 1 St Giles