How I Failed to Save The World

About the Book

A personal, perceptive, witty and sometimes very funny account of living and working in countries as diverse as Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Ethiopia, Chile, Tonga, Bolivia, Fiji, the Maldives, Tanzania, Australia, Gilbert and Ellice Islands and many others. Besides providing a fascinating account of the many countries he lived in with his family, the book also includes an insight into what it was like living as a privileged member of the United Nations. Not only does the book cover such personal hair raising experiences as being required to steer a 10,000 ship across the Atlantic, and his wife having to drive through a military coup in Addis Ababa waving a white flag made from one of her pillow cases, but it also provides an insider’s experience of working for international and national aid agencies. Finally it also explains how he ended up as Mayor of Guildford.

About the Author

He was born and brought up in Argentina and studied at the London School of Economics and Manchester University and then went to live and work what was then Rhodesia. From there he joined the United Nations in Ethiopia and later transferred to Chile. When the British Ministry of Overseas Development was first formed he was recruited as a Senior Economic Adviser and then promoted to Director of Country Programmes. Taking early retirement he became an economic consultant, entered local politics in Guildford as a Liberal Democrat and became Mayor in 2003. He is now retired and grows prize- winning pumpkins on his allotment.