New Years Honours 2018
To be a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit:
Rolleston, Dr William Blair Rhodes (8953) For services to the farming industry
Dr William Rolleston was President of Federated Farmers New Zealand from 2014 until 2017, having previously held the role of Vice President. As President Dr Rolleston has championed evidence-based arguments and bringing science to the fore, as well as engaging farmers with their impact on the environment and to proactively seek solutions to these issues. Under his leadership the primary industry moved to negotiate Government Industry Agreements for Biosecurity. In 2011 he played a pivotal role in the formation of the ‘Farmy Army’ in response to the Christchurch earthquake, and was a volunteer himself. He was elected Vice President of the World Farmers Organisation in July 2015 and appointed Acting President from September 2016 until June 2017.
He co-established the biotechnology company South Pacific Sera (SPS) in 1988, producing high quality biologicals for export. Through SPS he has supported the Woodhouse Scholars Programme, which provides educational opportunities in the biological sciences for young people from South Canterbury. He was the founding Chairman of New Zealand’s Biotechnology Industry Organisation and of the Life Sciences Network, an umbrella organisation of national science and industry organisations which advocated for science-based regulation of genetic modification. Dr Rolleston has been appointed to various government science policy positions.
Chronicle 2017
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