Mary E. White
Mary Elizabeth White AM (born 1926) is an Australian paleobotanist and author.[1]
She was born in South Africa, grew up in southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and received a master's degree in paleobotany from the University of Cape Town.[2] She married Bill White, a geologist; the couple came to Australia in 1955.[1] White worked as a consultant for the Bureau of Mineral Resources in Canberra until the 1980s; she also consulted on a part-time basis for mining companies. In 1975, she was hired as a research associate for the Australian Museum; she established a collection of 12,000 specimens of plant fossils for the museum.[2]
She is the author of:
- The Greening of Gondwana (1986)
- After the Greening: The browning of Australia (1994), received a Eureka Prize
- Listen...Our Land is Crying (1997)
- Running Down: Water in a Changing Land (2000), was shortlisted for a Eureka Prize[3]
- Earth Alive! From Microbes to a Living Planet (2003)[4]
White received the Riversleigh medal in 1999 for "excellence in promoting understanding of Australian prehistory". In 2010, she received a Lifetime of Conservation award from the Australian Geographic Society.[2] She was awarded the Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science's Mueller Medal in 2001. In 2009, she was named to the Order of Australia.[4]
In 2003, White moved to a large forested property at Johns River, New South Wales; she established a covenant to protect the land and preserve its biodiversity.[2]
References
- 1 2 Dolsen, Brett (31 October 2013). "Eighty five years of researching life on Earth". Australian Broadcasting Company.
- 1 2 3 4 "2010 AG Awards Lifetime of Conservation: Mary White". Australian Geographic Society. 6 October 2010.
- ↑ "Our Patron – Dr Mary E. White". Climate Change Australia.
- 1 2 "The Queen's Birthday 2009 Honours List" (PDF). Governor-General of Australia. p. 108.