Henk van Roosmalen
Henk van Roosmalen joined the ISS in 1965 and held the Chair of Rural Sociology until his retirement in 1992. He was also Acting Rector during his last years of office, and after his retirement he was called upon to return and to act as Interim Rector for a transitional period during 1995.
For many years, Henk van Roosmalen was a key and a remarkable figure in the shaping of the social and intellectual life of the ISS. His contributions were many and they came in many different forms, in teaching, in ISS management, in extensive project involvements, as a co-editor of Development and Change, and more. He was a man of considerable practical experience in Latin America (especially Brazil), Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Ghana who was able to bring insights to the classroom and to his supervision in a direct and powerful way. He was also a very astute and effective manager with a humorous, delicate (almost diplomatic) way of handling complex work situations, greasing the internal machinery of ISS and nurturing cohesion. A forthright, friendly and engaging man, he was much appreciated for his sharp mind, his humanity and his sense of fun. Perhaps the most striking contribution he brought to the Institute lay in his personality. It enabled him to approach issues, academic and organizational, with a sense of wit and humour that constituted an essential part of his problem-solving capacities.
Recognition of the positive roles he played gained him virtually Institute-wide support and saw him asked to assume the leadership again as Interim Rector in 1995, even after his formal retirement. Henk van Roosmalen will be remembered as a man who was critical in enabling ISS to re-discover its mission and to re-discover itself when there was serious risk of it falling victim to internal conflicts.
Bibliography
Dutch CFAs and NGOs in Bangladesh: an exploratory study / J.P.C. Guimaraes, H.P.A. van Roosmalen / J.P.C. GUIMARAES H.P.A. van ROOSMALEN; - The Hague: ISS Advisory Service (ISSAS), 1995.
Bangladesh / Henk van Roosmalen, Joao Guimaraes / H. van ROOSMALEN J. GUIMARAES;. - Oegstgeest : Gemeenschappelijk Overleg Medefinanciering (GOM), 1995.
Report on the social development policy workshop / organized by R.J. Apthorpe, W.J. Boelman, C.A.O. van Nieuwenhuijze and H.P.A. van Roosmalen. - The Hague: ISS, 1982.
Delta Development Project - Bangladesh : preliminary notes on the socio-economic situation in Polder 22, identification of fields of action and recommendations / H. van Roosmalen and J. Guimaraes / H. van ROOSMALEN J. GUIMARAES;. - The Hague: ISS Advisory Service (ISSAS), 1981.
Social work in a changing world / Jan F. Beekman, H.P.A. van Roosmalen, M. Kamphuis/-tenth International Conference of Social Work, Rome 1961 January 8-14. The Hague: National Council of Social Work in the Netherlands
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