Ray Ison is Professor Emeritus of Systems at the UK Open University (OU), where he has contributed to systems thinking and practice since 1994. He played a key role in OU’s Systems Thinking in Practice (STiP) program, leading research, teaching, and the professionalization of Systems Thinking Practitioner Apprenticeships. His research spans sustainability, governance, and learning systems, emphasizing social learning and systemic co-inquiry.
In 2008–2015, he shared appointments at OU and Monash University (in Melbourne, AU), leading the Systemic Governance Research Program at Monash Sustainability Institute. His latest book, The Hidden Power of Systems Thinking (2020), co-authored with Ed Straw, explores governance in a climate emergency.
Prof. Ison is President of the International Federation for Systems Research (IFSR) and has held leadership roles in ISSS (International Society for the Systems Sciences) and the American Society for Cybernetics. In 2022, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Systems Society of India ‘for contributions to the transformation of society with a systems approach’. He is currently based in Melbourne, Australia, where he is a Visiting Professor in the Transdisciplinary School at UTS(University of Technology, Sydney).