Sir James Foots remembered

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Tags: mining, Obituaries, summer-2010

Sir James Foots at the unveiling of his official portrait with artist John Rigby

Former UQ Chancellor Sir James Foots passed away in August at the age of 94. Vice-Chancellor Professor Paul Greenfield pays tribute to an Australian mining industry leader, distinguished philanthropist and renowned businessman.

Sir James Foots served as UQ Chancellor from 1985–1992, an era in which his business acumen was harnessed and philanthropic foresight embraced.

I can’t pretend to do justice to how Sir James’s vision, wisdom and generosity have helped position UQ for the 21st century.

Successful researchers will admit that their “breakthroughs” often hinge on serendipity – and Sir James’s ascent at Mount Isa Mines (MIM) was serendipitous for UQ.

He was the right man, with the right ideas, at the right time.

In an era when mining departments in some Australian and overseas universities were being diminished, he knew what higher education and research could do for MIM.

He galvanised mining education and research at UQ, and then expanded the relationship over more than five decades to touch virtually every facet of the University.

From the get-go, in the 1950s and 60s, the collaboration was mutually enriching.

For instance, academics and students earned an industry perspective when they conducted detailed research at the Mount Isa processing plant.

Sir James, a believer in the power of universities to contribute to the export economy, had created the environment for both parties to make global advances.

The partnership cranked up when he won the board’s backing to release funds to help build and run (for an extended period) a new centre at UQ’s Indooroopilly mine.

The Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (named after the former Mount Isa Mines General Manager and Chairman) opened in 1970.

JKMRC spawned JKTech – a roaring success in disseminating UQ research to the global minerals industry.

Today, JKMRC is organisationally within the Sustainable Minerals Institute – and that has headquarters in the Sir James Foots Building at our St Lucia campus.

Sir James became the inaugural Chair of MIM Holdings in 1970, and in the same year became a member of UQ’s governing council, the Senate.

He sustained this voluntary role for more than 20 years – but in reality he remained a trusted adviser well into the 21st century.

When UQ gave him an honorary doctorate in engineering in 1982, the Vice-Chancellor of the day, Professor Brian Wilson, said he was “a man with no too-hard basket”.

Brian saw Sir James as the natural choice to chair the new “UQ Foundation” – a serious attempt to link up with industry for research purposes.

To this day, that foundation provides hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual grants to promising early career researchers.

Within weeks of Sir James stepping aside as Chair of MIM Holdings in 1983, the UQ Senate unanimously voted him Deputy Chancellor. By mid-1985 he was Chancellor, unanimously elected when Sir Walter Campbell resigned to become Governor of Queensland.

At UQ, the Chancellor is the Chair of the board – but it’s all gratis.

And Sir James was already excessively busy with voluntary service.

For decades, he had given back to communities, both personally and through MIM. He was an inspired choice for Chancellor, and he and Brian made a gutsy duo.

As Brian says, Sir James presided over UQ at a seminal time – characterised by an improving national reputation for research, and the addition of both Customs House and Gatton Agricultural College to the University’s portfolio.

Sir James continued as Chancellor until 1992, giving invaluable counsel while Australian higher education endured major structural change.

He was a foundation board member, and later Chair, of UniQuest, our globally-recognised research commercialisation company.

Then, in the early 90s he chaired UQ’s first “Chancellor’s Appeal” – a precursor to the current age, when philanthropy is of unprecedented importance to the University.

Sir James himself was an extremely generous but unassuming giver to the University.

Students and graduates in mining-related disciplines continue to benefit from the Sir James Foots Scholarships, expressly for people who can demonstrate genuine need as well as all-round merit.

That kind of support is priceless.

Perhaps he was acting on his experience as a semi-orphaned, brilliant boy who clambered out of poverty after winning a scholarship to the University of Melbourne.

He was the epitome of the self-made man who never forgot his roots, or the opportunities that a few kind people and a fine education gave him.

His clarion call to graduating students included: “Each generation has an obligation to make things better for the rest.”

Clearly, he led by example.

Each year, thousands of successful students and their families celebrate their hard-won graduation – and since 1971 well over 100,000 graduates have attended their own ceremonies.

In 1971 Sir James – on behalf of MIM – gave us something unique: a mace made from Mount Isa copper, silicon-bronze, brass and silver.

Since then, the mace has followed a great number of students into their ceremonies.

That tradition won’t change – it’s as solid as the Mt Isa metals in the mace.

This is just one of the countless gifts from Sir James Foots that will keep on giving.

Professor Emeritus Brian Wilson was UQ Vice-Chancellor from 1979–1995. He paid tribute to Sir James from France, where he now resides.

When I arrived at The University of Queensland in January 1979 to take up appointment as Vice-Chancellor, I received an invitation from Sir James Foots, then a Senator of the University, to visit Mount Isa Mines, staying at the guest house and visiting the site the following day. What an experience!

This visit to the spinifex and the enormous physical plant facilities, above and deep underground, initiated a very positive personal and professional relationship with Jim as a Senator, Jim as my boss as Chancellor, and Jim as my friend – a friendship that lasted for 30 years.

His election as Chancellor in 1985 was in part a recognition of his enormous contributions to the Australian mining industry.

It also demonstrated the appreciation of the individual members of the Senate, which he had already served for 15 years, acknowledging his love of the University, his chairmanship skills, his fairness, integrity and approachability.

UniQuest, the University’s technology-transfer company, was initiated in 1984.
Jim was a founding member of the board and later became its Chair.

Jim’s business acumen, enthusiasm and energy carried the company through its initial growing pains – a company which has been successful beyond all expectations and is recognised now as a model for new developments of this kind.

Despite his other external commitments to industry and business while Chancellor, he was a wise adviser who made himself readily available to the University.

This accessibility and good counsel continued throughout the tumultuous years of the late 1980s, when the major structural changes to the Australian university system, introduced by John Dawkins, were being implemented.

In latter years, while living in France, I had less opportunity to meet with Jim and Thora.

When my wife and I visited with them two years ago in Caloundra, Jim’s gentle care of Thora was a clear testament to their 70-year-long partnership, and when we met with Jim for the last time two months ago, we found ourselves enjoying greatly a meeting with a man who though frail, still housed the indomitable spirit, humour and intellect of the Jim of old.

I am proud that he was my friend.

Vale, Jim.

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