|
Tim
Flannery, Envoronmentalist, Educators, Author and
2007 Australian Of The Year
Timothy
Fridtjof Flannery (born 28 January 1956) is an Australian
mammalogist, biologist, writer, Humanist, paleontologist
and 2007 Australian of the Year .
He
is noted for his best-selling books including The
Future Eaters and Throwim Way Leg. His most recent
book, The Weather Makers: The History and Future Impact
of Climate Change, was published in September 2005.
A young persons' edition of this book, titled We are
the Weathermakers, was published in August 2006.
He
is a frequent speaker on ecological issues, in particular
Global Warming, and is a vigorous advocate of human
population control.
Early
life
Flannery was educated at St Bede's College, Mentone,
Victoria and graduated from La Trobe University in
1977 with a BA in English Literature. Subsequently
he was awarded an MSc by Monash University (1981)
and a doctorate (PhD) by the University of NSW in
1985 for his work on the evolution of Macropods.
Academic
career
Prof. Flannery has held many academic positions throughout
his career including Professor at the University of
Adelaide, director of the South Australian Museum
in Adelaide, Principal Research Scientist at the Australian
Museum, Visiting Chair in Australian Studies at Harvard
University, and an adviser on environmental issues
to the Australian Federal Parliament. He holds bachelor
degrees in English and Earth Science, a doctorate
in Paleontology, and has contributed to over 90 scientific
papers.
Some
of his notable contributions to science have included:
Description
of 29 new kangaroo species, including the oldest known
fossilised species;
Involvement in the discovery of many fossilised dinosaurs
and Cretaceous species in Australia;
Description and taxonomy of a huge variety of Melanesian
species in New Guinea.
In August 2006 he moved to Macquarie University's
Division of Environmental and Life Sciences as an
adjunct Professor. He has also accepted a role as
a climate change advisor to Premier Mike Rann of South
Australia.
Advocacy
Combined with his efforts to combat climate change,
Flannery advocates a government control of Australia's
population. He seeks to aim for a figure lower than
currently resides in the country, by means unspecified.
"My personal estimate is between six and twelve
million". Flannery has advocated for the immediate
and complete shutdown of all of Australia's coal-fired
electricity plants, claiming that coal is just as
dangerous as asbestos.
Awards
and recognition
In 2005 Flannery was recognised as the Australian
Humanist of the Year by the Council of Australian
Humanist Societies.
Sir
David Attenborough is quoted as saying "Tim Flannery
is in the league of the all-time great explorers like
Dr. David Livingstone."
In
2006, Flannery won a $150,000 (US) Lannan award for
his nonfiction work.
Flannery
was named Australian of the Year for his contributions
to the environment and sustainability practices in
a ceremony at Parliament House on 25 January 2007.
After his acceptance he spoke about the Howard government's
decision not to sign the Kyoto Protocol "We've
not been part of Kyoto, we've cost the global enterprise
time, and time is critical", "we have wasted
at least a decade in dealing with this problem."
Television
In 2006 he appeared in a television documentary series
called Two Men In A Tinnie about the environmental
degradation of the Murray-Darling Basin, with his
longtime friend, John Doyle.
Personal life
Flannery lives in Sydney with his second wife. He
has two children with his first wife. (Credit:
Wikipedia).
Profiles
The
Weather Makers
Environmentalists
and the environment
|
