The Charles Darwin Research and Innovation Medal is awarded to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the economic, social and environmental development of the Northern Territory and its people.
The recipients of the inaugural medals were honoured by Laureate Professor Peter Doherty at the Charles Darwin Symposium Dinner on 23 September 2009.
This prestigious medal will be awarded in future on the recommendation of the Northern Territory Research and Innovation Board. It is not an annual award.
This prize differs from the Research and Innovation Awards in that the medal is presented in recognition of a lifetime achievement. The Research and Innovation Awards are project-based.
2009 Medal Recipients
Dr Alan Andersen
Alan is a Chief Research Scientist with CSIRO in Darwin. He led the expansion of CSIRO's skills base to establish the multi-disciplinary capability required to address the challenges of sustainable land management and regional development across northern Australia, especially on Indigenous lands.
Alan is the world’s leading expert on the ecology of ants and their use as bio-indicators in land management. He has received international recognition of his achievements, including the Far Eastern Economic Review's 2001 Asian Innovation Award.
Dr Goff Letts
Goff Letts was recruited by the Commonwealth in 1957 to head up a field team responsible for controlling the impact of bovine pleuropneumonia on the northern Australian pastoral industry and renewing interest in live exports to Asia. As the first Chief Inspector of Wildlife and the Chair of the Wildlife Advisory Council he moved to protect freshwater crocodiles and established several wildlife sanctuaries.
Dr Letts was awarded a CBE in 1978 for his services to the Northern Territory and public administration.
Lorna "Nanna Nungala" Fejo
Lorna Fejo recognised that the severe health problems faced by adult Indigenous Australian are influenced from the time they are in utero. She developed a culturally sensitive program addressing low birth weights. This resulted in the Strong Women, Strong Babies, Strong Culture program, which operates in communities throughout the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia.
Mrs Fejo received the 1988 Australian Medical Association’s Best Individual Contribution to Health Care in Australia award, and in 2001 she was awarded the Centenary Medal for her service to Aboriginal Communities.
Dr Peter Whitehead
Peter Whitehead played a key role in the development of the research capacity of the Conservation Commission of the Northern Territory. He contributed to the quality of research that emerged and continues to provide advice on research and innovation.
Dr Whitehead was instrumental in having Indigenous concepts of healthy country accepted into mainstream thinking. His research supports the development of policy that will enable wildlife-based industries on Indigenous lands. He contributed to the Caring for Country and the ranger programs that are providing jobs for Indigenous Australians working on country.