John Robinson

AC member

John Robinson is currently a trustee at Citizens Advice, London, Treasurer of Citizens Advice Westminster and a Trustee of Highgate Cemetery.

In 1987, after completing a D.Phil in Philosophy of Mind at Oxford, he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study Public Administration at Rutger’s University, which allowed him to learn both from academics and colleagues in the vastly different environment of Newark, NJ. His focus shifted from developing theory to understanding the practical importance of contingency. He studied HR with a Marxist professor at the Jersey City Police Academy, completed an internship at Newark Hospital during the height of the AIDS crisis, and prepared a dissertation on Peer Review of grant applications.

During the Fulbright year, John enjoyed the opportunity to engage with student peers from all backgrounds who he found incredibly hospitable and eager to exchange knowledge from their practical experiences. Diversity of thought, background and physical characteristics was not just an important academic topic but an even more important, and conspicuous part of his lived experience in the US.