Professor Thomas Wälde in Memoriam
As has already been announced elsewhere, Professor Thomas Wälde, Scotland, passed away in October 2008.
Thomas was an outstanding personality and a great scholar sharing his wealth of knowledge and vast experiences with many colleagues, students and friends all over the world. One of the less well known projects in which he involved himself is our journal Raw Materials Report, as it was called from the beginning in 1980. In the early 1990s, when Thomas had just established himself in Dundee, he enthusiastically started cooperation between the Centre for Petroleum & Mineral, Law & Policy (as it was then called) and the Raw Materials Group (RMG), including both the journal and other joint projects. At that time, mining was not very high either on the public or the academic agenda. The journal was facing deep difficulties, having been riding on the global interest for mineral raw materials and their political economy, which was at its peak in the late 1970s and early 1980s. But with Thomas's eager support both on a personal and professional level a team was formed, including later also the University of Luleå, Sweden, which together managed to transform the journal into a reputable scientific publication.
Thomas injected new ideas into the journal and he shared his wide network of contacts to widen the readership of the journal, as well as the number of contributors. His involvement gave the journal new credibility and many new friends. Initially the two of us shared the Editorial responsibility. But with the entry of the University of Luleå, the Editors were recruited among their post doctorate researchers. It was left to RMG to secure the financing of the journal. Thomas had a soft spot for complicated names and he renamed our publication Journal of Mineral Policy, Business and Environment/Raw Materials Report. For a few years we struggled with the impossible acronym JPBE/RMR, but the journal is now simply Minerals & Energy. The Scottish/Swedish tripartite combination of a critical academic approach and an independent NGO tradition turned out to be successful. The journal is still published more than 15 years later, being one of the oldest publications in its field and well placed to continue its role during the renewed interest in the mineral sector and its increasing importance for global social and economic development.
Although the journal was a very minor part of Thomas' vast activities, I think it suited his personality well and symbolises the wide breadth of his many areas of interest. The journal is firmly placed in the crosscutting between policy, economy and law, and treats today's hot topics from an environmental, social, economic and historical point of view, all very much like Thomas did himself.
Thomas was also a personal friend of mine, was very hospitable, and on several occasions did I have the opportunity to visit him and his wife Charlotte in their home at Dunino Bridge in Scotland. He gave freely of his thoughtful and friendly advice, whether we discussed the journal or family matters. His contribution in a critical phase of our journal's life is greatly appreciated, and his friendship missed.
Stockholm, July 2009
Magnus Ericsson
On behalf of past and present editorial teams of Minerals & Energy - Raw Materials Report
Professor Thomas Wälde, 1949–2008, was born in Germany and educated in Heidelberg, Lausanne-Geneva, Berlin, Frankfurt and Harvard. He entered the United Nation's service in New York in 1980 and moved to Scotland and the Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law & Policy at the University of Dundee in 1991. He was the director of the Centre until 2003, when he started his international dispute resolution practice, which he continued until his death.