2003
Honorary award citation
Dr Aila Keto, AO will be awarded a Doctor of Science honoris causa in recognition of her distinguished career and contribution to the conservation of the environment.
More than 400 students from around Queensland and interstate will graduate at the ceremony in a wide range of disciplines including agribusiness, agriculture and horticulture, animal studies, and environmental management.
A recognised authority on World Heritage matters, Dr Keto helped achieve the landmark closure in 1987 of the rainforest timber industry in north Queensland and the subsequent end of all rainforest logging on Queensland public land in 1994.
She also helped negotiate the 1999 South-east Queensland Forests Agreement with the Queensland Government, conservation groups and the Queensland Timber Board.
An Adjunct Professor since 2002 in UQ’s School of Agronomy and Horticulture, she is currently helping develop the recently launched Centre for Native Floriculture at UQ Gatton.
She is also leading a team assessing the conservation values of a 40-million-hectare area in Queensland.
A UQ graduate, Dr Keto has published widely and has a long history of service to many conservation councils and agencies.
In 1992 she become only the second Australian to receive the Fred M Parkard International Parks Merit Award, presented once a decade by the International Union for Conversation of Nature.
Other honours include a Centenary Medal (2003), Queenslander of the Year Award (2000), Premier’s Millennium Award for Excellence (2000), an Officer in the Order of Australia (1994), and recognition in the United Nations Environment Program’s Global 500 Roll of Honour (1988).