John P. Hearn

John Hearn is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) and Professor of Physiology at the University of Sydney. He was vice-president (Research) at the Australian National University (2001-2004) and director, Research School of Biological Sciences (1998-2001). He is a reproductive and developmental physiologist with over 170 refereed research publications and six edited books in human and animal fertility, embryo implantation, stem cell biology and biotechnology. His current research is in the international development of higher education and research and the impact of biological discoveries on society. He holds the Scientific Medal of the Zoological Society of London, the Osman-Hill Medal of the Primate Society of Great Britain and the Australian Centenary Medal “for outstanding service to science and to the Australian Government as a scientific adviser”.

Awarded his PhD from the ANU in 1973 in marsupial physiology, he served as a researcher, educator and director of national and international programs, for 6-7 years each, at the Universities of Edinburgh, London UCL, Wisconsin and the ANU; and as senior scientific consultant with the World Health Organisation and the World Wildlife Fund. In conjunction with these appointments, he was director of Science of the Zoological Society of London 1980-1987, deputy secretary of the Agricultural and Food Research Council of the UK 1987-1990 and director of the Wisconsin National Primate Research Centre 1990-1996. He was elected president of the International Primatological Society (1984-1988) and of the Society for Reproductive Biology (2001-2004). He has directed research and institutional leadership and development programmes in Kenya, Brazil, China, Thailand and India. He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

He is a member of the OECD Steering Group for the Bioeconomy 2030 programme and the Board of Sports Knowledge Australia. He was chairman of the WHO Asia-Pacific Panel in reproductive health research and a member of the Science and Technology Advisory Group, Geneva (1998-2006); chairman of the Australian Biotechnology Advisory Council to Federal Government (2002-2005); and scientific adviser to the Australian House of Representatives Committee on cloning and stem cell research (1999-2001).