Leading businessman named Western Australian of the Year

Telethon chair and graduate of The University of Western Australia, Richard Goyder AO, has been named Western Australian of the Year for his commitment to philanthropy at the 2021 Western Australian of the Year awards.

He beat 36 other finalists across seven categories to take out the Alcoa Community Award and the top honour.

Mr Goyder, who graduated from UWA with a Bachelor of Commerce, chairs the WA Symphony Orchestra, Qantas, Woodside, the Australian Football League and diabetes not-for-profit JDRF and is a UWA Business School Advisory Board member.

The Western Australian of the Year Awards recognise and celebrate the outstanding contribution of Western Australians to the State, who have made an extraordinary impact in a range of fields over the past two years.

Two UWA Adjunct Professors were recognised at the awards, as winners in their respective categories.

Mr Alec Coles OBE, an Adjunct Associate Professor from UWA’s School of Social Sciences and chief executive of the WA Museum, won the Woodside Energy Arts and Culture Award for his commitment to driving the largest cultural redevelopment project in the Southern Hemisphere – the new WA Museum.

Mr Coles was honoured for his dedication to establishing a new State Museum that is owned, valued and used by all Western Australians and admired by the world.

The museum’s name Boola Bardip means ‘many stories’ in the Noongar language and one of the key features of the museum is its focus on the State’s Indigenous past and a desire to showcase Aboriginal work.

Telethon Kids Institute Director, Professor Jonathan Carapetis AM, from UWA’s Centre for Child Health Research, won the HBF Professions Award.

UWA Professor Carapetis was recognised for his role as a world-leading expert on Strep A infections and rheumatic heart disease, his commitment to improving Aboriginal health and building capacity within the Aboriginal research sector, his wider leadership in the medical research sector, and the leadership role he has taken in providing a reassuring voice for the community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fifteen UWA staff, students and graduates were among the 37 finalists.