Following the presentation of the Merit Awards, the President, Jon Womersley, also presented certificates of appreciation to Western Environmental and Pendragon, in recognition of their ongoing support of the WA Division. 

President, Jon Womersley, was joined by the Australasian Journal of Environmental Management Co-editor, Helen Ross, and Chair of the Certified Environmental Practitioner scheme Board, Alan Chenoweth, to present the Merit Awards.

The Simon Molesworth Award is the highest individual honour bestowed by the EIANZ each year and is awarded for an outstanding contribution to the Institute, at Institute level. The winner of the 2015 Simon Molesworth Award was Richard Sharp.

Richard has been described as the driving force behind the ACT Division and is a Fellow of the Institute. His many achievements include delivery of two Institute conferences in Canberra, leading policy and practice thinking across a range of issues and engagement with decision-makers. He is now the Treasurer and has held every position on the ACT Division committee (often more than once), as well as Divisional Councillor and other Institute-wide positions since joining the EIANZ in 1990.

The Mary-Lou Morris Award recognises outstanding service to the Institute at Division or Chapter level. The winner of the 2015 Mary-Lou Morris award is Adam Smith.

Adam is a long-standing member of the Institute and has made a substantial contribution through the Far North Queensland Division. He has held every position on the Far North Queensland committee at different times over the past decade or so, and is an outstanding environmental practitioner. Through his work at the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, and in other roles, he has been a leader in the management of this World Heritage Area.

The Tor Hundloe Award is awarded to the most outstanding Young Environmental Practitioner of the year. The winner of the 2015 Tor Hundloe Award is Sophie Cowie.

Sophie leads the South East Queensland Division’s students and early career activities, as has recently been appointed as Chair of the EIANZ Students and Early Careers Committee. She has convened several successful events in South East Queensland and has impressed her employer, Cardno, through delivery of high quality project work. 

The Environmental Practitioner of the Year award is awarded by the CEnvP Board. The winner of the 2015 Environmental Practitioner of the Year is Lachlan Wilkinson.

Lachie is a long-standing member of the Institute and leads the Impact Assessment Special Interest Section. He is an Impact Assessment specialist under the Certified Environmental Practitioner program. Lachie is a leading thinker on impact assessment policy and practice, implemented through such things as coordination of submissions to government and engagement with the International Association for Impact Assessment.

The Eric Anderson Award recognises the best article in the Australasian Journal of Environmental Management (The Institute’s journal) in 2014 -2015. It is sponsored by Taylor & Francis and honours the journal’s first editor. It was presented to Grant Wardell-Johnson, David Schoeman, Thomas Schlacher, Angela Wardell-Johnson, Mike Weston, Yoko Shimizu and Gabriel Conroy (2015) for ‘Re-framing values for a World Heritage future: what type of icon will K’gari-Fraser Island become?’, part of the June 2015 special issue on K’Gari-Fraser Island edited by Angela Wardell-Johnson. The judges commended the article as “An accessible summary of the environmental values of K'gari (Fraser Island), delving into the challenges of this over-loved tourist destination, and offering some good suggestions for improved management in the future”.

L-R: Angela Wardell-Johnson, Grant Wardell-Johnson, Dugal McFarlane (accepting award on Richard Sharp's behalf), Sophie Cowie, Adam Smith and Lachlan Wilkinson