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Sir Gustav Nossal is from the University of Melbourne and was Australian of the Year in 2000.

“Simon McKeon is a fabulous choice as Australian of the Year.

Having reached the highest level of success in the business and commercial world, he has steadfastly maintained heavy time commitments for public-spirited work. His involvement in philanthropic causes is legendary, but nevertheless he has found the time and energy to become Chairman of CSIRO, that iconic standard-bearer of Australian applied science and technology. Australia needs more leaders who can straddle the worlds of industry, commerce and finance on the one hand and innovation, science and technology on the other. From that viewpoint, the decision to anoint Simon has huge symbolic significance.

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Professor Mike Brooks, Acting Vice-Chancellor and President, University of Adelaide.

“It’s wonderful to see such a generous champion of science and research recognised at the very highest level for his service to the community.”

Below, several of his colleagues in the science community comment on the announcement.

Further information on the announcement is available at www.australianoftheyear.gov.au

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Neville Nicholls is Professorial Fellow at Monash University’s School of Geography and Environmental Science.

“Tim is a rare example of that most elusive species: a 21st century Aussie Renaissance Man. Whether he is exploring the jungle, discovering new species, editing history books, or explaining global warming, he brings to bear a sense of literary style, encyclopedic knowledge, and productivity that leaves the rest of us floundering in his wake.”

Professor Richard ‘Bert’ Roberts is a geochronologist from the University of Wollongong. Bert has worked with Tim in recent years looking at the question of megafaunal extinctions.

“Tim thoroughly deserves it in lots of different ways; he’s very passionate and has contributed not only to our understanding of animals in this country but also to global climate change and how it affects Australia.

He has charisma and a real drive that is so often needed to take people out of their couches and get them to go ahead and make changes to their own lives. And there’s no one more Australian than Tim.”

Professor Bob Hill is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and is also Head of Science at the South Australian Museum where Tim was Director until the middle of last year.

“Tim is one of the most innovative thinkers about the cause and magnitude of Australia’s environmental problems. He is the best kind of optimist – he recognises the difficulty of the problem, but always suggests solutions. His recent foray into global environmental issues is a natural progression and truly marks him as a 21st Century Australian of the Year – he has a profound understanding of Australia’s place in the world.”

Note to editors: Tim Flannery was a board member of the Australian Science Media Centre and is now on the Centre’s Science Advisory Panel (SAP).