A major donation from Dr Maxwell Day AO FAA, is being used to establish the annual Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award of up to $20 000, which will help PhD students or early-career researchers meet costs associated with their research or to supplement PhD scholarships.
The award is named in honour of Dr Maxwell Frank Cooper Day AO FAA who is the longest serving Fellow of the Academy and who has spent a lifetime championing entomology, conservation and forestry, and helping other scientists. Elected to the Academy in 1956—just two years after the Academy was founded—Dr Day still clearly remembers the 1958 ceremony at which then Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies officially laid the foundation stone of what is now known as the Shine Dome. Dr Day said recently that the most satisfying achievement of his long career was the work he did with the late Professor Frank Fenner AC FAA FRS on developing the myxomatosis virus which played a major part in controlling Australia’s rabbit problem. Dr Day is also proud of his work establishing the Division of Forest Research within CSIRO, which led to Australia’s international recognition for its contribution to forest research.
As for the future, Dr Day would like to see more diversification and collaboration across disciplines.
I’d like to think that scientists of the future can also think broadly and put their specialisation into a broader context.Dr Day
Dr Day and his family are generously funding this Fellowship to support scientists early in their careers, acknowledging the support that Dr Day himself received as a young researcher to travel overseas to gain his PhD at Harvard.
We sincerely thank Dr Day for his generosity.
A special thank you to Doug Hooley for his generous support to the Max Day Environmental Science Fellowship Award. Mr Hooley has pledged his ongoing support of the award.
© 2024 Australian Academy of Science
