– Marilyn Spinks
Citation
Dr John Wilson is acknowledged throughout Tasmania as an outstanding conservationist with a lifetime of service to the conservation of wilderness values.
His love for the Tasmanian wilderness has led to many years of activisms to protect the natural values of the state through leadership and strong participation in many environmental based organisations. He has been particularly active in the Tasmanian Conservation Trust and the Tasmanian Land Conservancy in ensuring the protection of critical landscapes for future generations. John has been rewarded for his services by being granted Life Membership of the Tasmanian Conservation Trust.
Art is another accomplishment of John’s. In 1999 he made use of his talents with an exhibition at the QVMAG to raise funds for the Road to Nowhere Tarkine campaign in 1997-1999.
John has also been a member of the Friends of Cradle Valley for many years and served as Secretary for a decade. During this period John was responsible for the regular production of bulletins to update members with articles and photographs of happenings at Cradle. John continues his activism for conservation through regular publication of letters to newspaper editors, raising concerns about the preservation of the natural environment.
John is also widely recognised for the recording, preservation and publication of the medical history of Tasmania.
In his later years, John and his partner Peter Sims, have given sterling support to the Friends of Cradle Valley while enjoying their property at Daisy Dell. In 2017 the Tasmanian Land Conservancy purchased the Daisy Dell Reserve which adjoins John and Peter’s property with significant financial support from John and Peter. Their own property has now been gifted to the TLC in their wills to build on the existing reserve.
Dr John Wilson justly deserves to be included in The Kate and Gustav Weindorfer Honours List by the Friends of Cradle Valley.