{"69252":{"#nid":"69252","#data":{"type":"news","title":"ISyE Alumnus and Interface Chairman Ray Anderson Dies","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ERay C. Anderson (IE 1956, Honorary PhD 2011), founder and\nchairman of Interface Inc. and noted environmentalist, died Monday at age 77\nafter a 20-month battle with cancer. \u0026nbsp;He died at his home in Atlanta\nsurrounded by family. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAnderson was an honors graduate of Georgia Tech\u0027s H. Milton\nStewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISyE) in 1956. Anderson\nrecently received an honorary degree at Georgia Tech\u2019s 240\u003Csup\u003Eth\u003C\/sup\u003E\ncommencement ceremony on August 5, 2011, for his work to secure a greener world\nfor future generations through his championing of the business case for\nsustainability.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAnderson founded Interface, Inc. in 1973 to produce the\nfirst free-lay carpet tiles in America.\u0026nbsp; Interface is now the world\u2019s\nlargest producer of modular commercial floor coverings and interior finishes.\nHe moved from day-to-day management of Interface Inc. in 2001 and spent the\nnext 10 years as non-executive chairman, focusing his time and energy on the\nbusiness case for sustainability, delivering more than 1,000 speeches and\nauthoring two books on the topic.\u0026nbsp; By serving as the driving force behind\nthe company\u2019s efforts to completely eliminate any negative impact it has on the\nenvironment by 2020, Anderson earned the well-deserved global recognition as\nthe \u201cgreenest chief executive in America.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Ray is one of my few heroes.\u0026nbsp; He put the company he built and his personal fortune\non the line when he committed Interface, Inc. to sustainability.\u0026nbsp; Who else has done that?\u201d said Craig Tovey, professor\nin ISyE and in the College of Computing at Georgia Tech.\u0026nbsp; \u201cHe eloquently communicated his profound understanding\nof how externalities and corporate governance fundamentally drive against\nsustainability in the U.S.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; We will miss\nhim and his leadership.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA loyal and devoted supporter of his alma mater for more\nthan five decades, Anderson served as chair and vice chair of the Georgia Tech\nAdvisory Board as well as serving on the ISyE Advisory Board. \u0026nbsp;He has also\nserved on the Georgia Tech Foundation Board of Trustees, the Capital Campaign\nExecutive Committee, and his 40th and 50th class reunion committees. In\npartnership with Interface, Anderson established the Anderson-Interface Chair in\nNatural Systems at the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems\nEngineering at Georgia Tech. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cRay was an inspiration to me and to many of us here at\nGeorgia Tech,\u201d reflects Valerie Thomas, Anderson-Interface in Natural Systems\nAssociate Chair. \u0026nbsp;\u201cHe shook things up; he made change that will continue.\nRay challenged us to redesign the industrial system to eliminate waste of all\nkinds. We have a long way to go and we need to take giant steps. Ray took giant\nsteps himself, transforming the sleepy carpet industry into a model for\nsustainable manufacturing worldwide.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EAnderson is a College of Engineering Distinguished Alumnus,\na recipient of the Dean Griffin Community Service Award, and a member of the\nCollege of Engineering Hall of Fame, and the ISyE Hall of Fame.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn 2007, Anderson received the Purpose Prize from Civic\nVentures, a think tank and incubator that generates ideas and invents programs\nto help society achieve the greatest return on experience. The same year, he\nreceived the International Quality of Life Award from Auburn University. In\n2001, he received the George and Cynthia Mitchell International Prize for\nSustainable Development. In 1996, Anderson received the inaugural Millennium\nAward from Global Green and won recognition from Forbes magazine and Ernst\n\u0026amp; Young, which named him Entrepreneur of the Year. He also has been honored\nby Southface Energy Institute, SAM-SPG (Switzerland), the U.S. Green Building\nCouncil, the National Wildlife Federation, the Design Futures Council, the Children\u2019s\nHealth and Environmental Coalition, Harvard Business School Alumni (Atlanta\nChapter), the International Interior Design Association, the Southern Institute\nfor Business \u0026amp; Professional Ethics, the Possible Woman Foundation\nInternational, the World Business Academy, and the Council of Scientific\nSociety Presidents.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EA former board chair for the Georgia Conservancy, Anderson\nserved on the boards of the Ida Cason Callaway Foundation, Rocky Mountain\nInstitute, the David Suzuki Foundation, LaGrange College, Emory University\nBoard of Visitors, the ASID Foundation, Worldwatch Institute and Melaver Inc.\nHe was also a member of the advisory boards of the Harvard Medical School\nCenter for Health and the Global Environment and the Upper Chattahoochee\nRiverkeeper. He holds eleven honorary doctorates.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Not only did Interface and the world lose a great man\ntoday, but I lost a friend and mentor,\u201d said Interface President and CEO Dan\nHendrix. \u201cRay\u0027s iconic spirit and pioneering vision are not only his legacy,\nbut our future. We will honor Ray by keeping his vision alive and the company\non course.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\n\nFor those who would like to share thoughts about\nRay and his life, visit the blog \u0022In Memoriam\u0022 at \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/raycandersonblog.com\/\u0022\u003Ehttp:\/\/raycandersonblog.com\/\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ERay C. Anderson (IE\n1956, Honorary PhD 2011), founder and chairman of Interface Inc. and noted environmentalist, died Monday at age 77 after a\n20-month battle with cancer. He died at\nhis home in Atlanta surrounded by family.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"27511","created_gmt":"2011-08-09 14:34:39","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:09:55","author":"Ashley Daniel","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2011-08-09T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2011-08-09T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"69254":{"id":"69254","type":"image","title":"Ray Anderson","body":null,"created":"1449177239","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:13:59","changed":"1475894606","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:43:26","alt":"Ray Anderson","file":{"fid":"192744","name":"08c3026-p2-014.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/08c3026-p2-014_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/08c3026-p2-014_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2588818,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/08c3026-p2-014_0.jpg?itok=u9--NPnv"}}},"media_ids":["69254"],"groups":[{"id":"1242","name":"School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISYE)"}],"categories":[{"id":"130","name":"Alumni"}],"keywords":[{"id":"1202","name":"H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering"},{"id":"13962","name":"Interface Inc."},{"id":"426","name":"isye"},{"id":"13961","name":"Ray C. Anderson"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:barbara.christopher@isye.gatech.edu\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBarbara Christopher\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EIndustrial and Systems Engineering\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E404.385.3102\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}