2015-06-11
Mr BARBER (Northern Metropolitan) — I was delighted to learn that one of Australia's great environmentalists and a dear, dear friend of mine, Karen Alexander, had been awarded the OAM. I could not think of a more deserving candidate for the OAM, particularly in the quiet achiever subcategory. Karen has spent her entire life in pursuit of the protection of biodiversity and nature. This love arose out of her childhood experiences in the hills around Melbourne. She has gone on to play leading roles in some of the major environmental battles in Australia, and beyond that, as environmentalism has become more mainstream, to develop systems and campaigns to protect the fragile biodiversity of Australia.
When the Franklin River campaign moved from Tasmania and went national, it was Karen Alexander who organised that as it migrated to Melbourne. She has been the president of Bush Heritage Australia and has been integrally involved in the Australian Conservation Foundation and the Victorian National Parks Association. Most recently she has put a huge amount of effort into biolinks campaigns designed to take Victoria's damaged biodiversity, restore it and preserve it for future generations. Congratulations to Karen.