The University of Queensland will officially honour three of its most successful graduates at the annual Courting the Greats Luncheon, to be held today, Wednesday, September 26 at Brisbane Customs House at 2pm.
Dr Anna Straton has been named Young Alumnus of the Year, Datuk Dr Rosti Saruwono is this year’s International Alumnus, and Dr Jackie Huggins, AM, is the 2007 UQ Alumnus of the Year.
Dr Anna Straton, a UQ Economics graduate, will receive her award in recognition of her work as a research scientist for the CSIRO in the Northern Territory.
“I am working in my ideal job as a post doctoral fellow with CSIRO’s Sustainable Ecosystems division,” Dr Straton said.
“My degree at UQ has given me a solid theoretical and analytical basis for the understanding of a wide range of issues and questions that I find fascinating and that are important to the future of Australia.”
Dr Straton completed her Bachelor of Economics in 1998 and graduated with first-class honours in 1999.
Her PhD thesis, which she completed in 2005, offered a new perspective on how to deal with environmental problems, and attracted significant attention.
Professor John Foster, Head of UQ’s School of Economics, and Dr Straton’s PhD research supervisor, could not speak more highly of the Young Alumnus.
“Upon graduation, Anna was determined to roll up her sleeves and get involved in research and advising in the context of solving actual environmental problems, rather than becoming an academic,” Professor Foster said.
“She is a fine example of an outstanding Honours and PhD student who has gone out of academia to make a difference in a vitally important area.”
Dr Straton is currently a research scientist with the CSIRO and is involved in projects including the assessment of the social and economic values of Australia’s tropical rivers, property rights and greenhouse gas abatement on Aboriginal land and evaluating the resilience of tropical savanna land use systems.
The UQ International Alumnus of the Year Award has been awarded to Datuk Dr Rosti Saruwono, who completed a Bachelor of Engineering in 1974.
Datuk Dr Rosti is Vice President of the Education Division at PETRONAS, a fully-integrated oil and gas corporation owned by the Malaysian Government and ranked among FORTUNE Global 500’s largest corporations in the world.
After graduating Datuk Dr Rosti commenced work with the Malaysian Government and has since been committed to developing opportunities in education, training, and employment for Malay youth.
Datuk Dr Rosti said his studies at The University of Queensland had prepared him for a lengthy and successful career.
As a distinguished public administrator, academic and policy maker, Datuk Dr Rosti is highly respected in Malaysia, Australia and internationally.
UQ’s 2007 Alumnus of the Year is Dr Jackie Huggins, AM.
As co-chair of Reconciliation Australia and deputy-director of UQ’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit, Dr Huggins is a more than worthy recipient.
In 2001 Dr Huggins was made a member of the Order of Australia.
After completing her undergraduate degree at UQ in the 1980s she went on to obtain a diploma of education and an honorary doctorate, conferred by the University last year.
Dr Huggins, a renowned activist, said she would continue to strive for reconciliation, a cause she has actively supported for many years.
The Alumnus of the Year is selected by the Alumni Association of the University of Queensland Inc.
Please note the Alumnus and Young Alumnus of the Year will attend today's ceremony.
Media: Further Information, Penny Robinson (3365 9723, penny.robinson@uq.edu.au) or Dr Straton (0448 490 005, anna.straton@csiro.au)
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