Deceased October 19, 2014
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50th Reunion Book Entry
In Memory
Ken Frederick died at home in Nellysford, Va., on Oct. 19 from complications of congestive heart failure. Ken received his Ph.D. in economics from MIT in 1965. He was an economic adviser in Brazil for the U.S. Agency for International Development from 1965 to 1967 and an assistant professor of economics at the California Institute of Technology from 1967 to 1971.
From 1971 until his retirement, he was senior fellow at Resources for the Future, where from 1977 to 1988 he served as director of their Renewable Resources Division. He served as consultant to federal agencies, international institutions, the Natural Heritage Institute and private corporations. He was author of more than 60 published articles and the author, co-author or editor of 10 books on the economic and environmental aspects of water and natural resource planning.
Ken is survived by his wife, Susan (Mt. Holyoke ‘62), son Scott, daughter Karen Parello and four grandchildren.
Due to a heart defect, Ken had to drop off the Amherst tennis team. An operation to correct it became available after graduation, allowing him to play tennis again and enjoy the next 50 years in good health. He managed to combine his work experience with tennis-friendly and attractive locations in Brazil, Argentina, California and Virginia.
Ken’s sense of humor and easy-going manner endeared him to all who knew him. Ken’s understanding of economics came through clearly to me in how he could explain complex economic theory in concise and understandable language—a teaching gift that the best ones possess. This would have manifested itself in his teaching at Caltech and in his many published articles and books.
Ken should be commended for his contribution to the development, conservation and productive use of natural resources for the improvement of the quality of the environment.
Paul Fairchild ’61