My Life as Civic Activist and Beyond

Foreword: Recently I was asked by an organization called the American Academy of Housing and Communities to do a podcast on my activities as a civic activist in Alexandria,Virginia, and work in development overseas. I was reluctant at first, never having before considered recording on paper or verbally that element of my experience. Having recently decided at age 85 that the time has come to retire from active civic engagement, I agreed to be interviewed as a kind of “Last Hurrah.” Below is the “teaser” publicity material that the podcasters provided as well as links to the podcast and the sponsor’s website.

Meet John H. (“Jack”) Sullivan – if it’s part of his passion – watch out! If he wants something enough, he’ll fight for it until he gets it! He tells about his activism in many arenas – internationally in 65 countries, as head of USAID’s Bureau for Asia and Pacific, in the Green Revolution, in family planning, and in sewage cleanup in his own city of Alexandria, Virginia. In 1978 Jack was awarded USAID’s Superior Honor Award for “outstanding leadership in the areas of equal opportunity and affirmative action,” for his appointment of women and minorities to executive positions. 

Jack has been directly involved in influencing legislation by heading the House staff on SALT I arms control legislation, economic aid to wartime Vietnam, implementation of the Sinai Accords, and the War Powers Act. Dr. Sullivan served with the U.S. delegation to the United Nations General Assembly session and was with the first Congressional staff group to visit China. In 1977 Jack was chosen by the Carter Administration to manage the transition process at USAID and subsequently selected to head its Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, with 2,800 employees and a $1.5 billion annual budget. During his tenure the Bureau concentrated on spreading the technologies of the agricultural “Green Revolution” and family planning to the poor of South and Southeast Asia. In 1978 Jack was awarded USAID’s Superior Honor Award for “outstanding leadership in the areas of equal opportunity and affirmative action,” for his appointment of women and minorities to executive positions. 

He has taught political science courses in many prestigious universities. One of his passions is local public policy, whether it’s cable television, HIV/AIDS, the Alexandria waterfront or zoning. As a longtime local civic and political activist, he has had a career spanning five decades, appointed to eleven city boards and commissions. 

Key Moments on the podcast: He describes his father (a civil activist) as his greatest influence and his career as a police reporter which drove him to join politics and try to make a change [1:43] He describes negotiating a large housing loan program in India and other major projects he worked on [5:34] The importance of considering community input when developing before the project takes off [13:53] How he and others worked to stop the flow of raw sewage being discharged into the Potomac River by Alexandria, remediation that is currently ongoing [15:54] The importance of conducting thorough research as advice to younger people in policy-making careers [19:04] 

I invite my readers to go to the podcast. Here are  links to use- website page:  https://trailblazersimpact.com/2020/08/john-h-jack-sullivan/

The video on YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl_bUBBV4BieMfshU9xWyPQ