Athol Williams is a South African academic and author based at the University of Oxford in the UK.  He draws on two decades of professional experience holding executive roles in corporate strategy and management consulting (USA, UK, South Africa) to inform his teaching and research.

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He holds seven university degrees including five masters degrees from five top-ranked global universities and a PhD from the University of Oxford.

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Williams has a long history of public service promoting youth literacy and resisting corporate corruption. A core theme of his work is the possibility of ethical behaviour by individuals, corporations and broader societies.  

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He has published eighteen books, over 100 poems, a few academic and professional articles and extensive opinion pieces, and has received numerous awards for his public service, academic work and writing. In 2023 he received the Mayor's Medal for Extraordinary Bravery from the City of Cape Town, and in 2019 the Cultural Affairs Award for Contribution to the Literary Arts from the Western Cape Government. In 2024, Hertford College, University of Oxford elected Williams an Honorary Fellow, their highest recognition.