Ian Laurence Scott (12 October 1933 – 24 January 2001) was an Australian
Rotarian
Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...
who founded
Australian Rotary Health (ARH), a major non-government funder of medical research in Australia.
[Henningham, P. (2011). With Health in Mind: The Story of Australian Rotary Health. Parramatta: Australian Rotary Health.]
Career
Ian Scott was a banker who worked for the then
National Bank. Starting in this home town of
Mirboo North, Victoria
Mirboo North is a town in Victoria, Australia, located east of Melbourne, with a population of 1,697. It is in the South Gippsland Shire local government area.
The town is at the start of the Grand Ridge Rail Trail, which travels for 13 ...
, he rose through the ranks to become a Manager, Regional Manager then City Executive. Scott joined Rotary in 1973. He served in many
Rotary Clubs
Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...
throughout
New South Wales
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, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
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, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
and
Victoria. In 1981, while a member of the Rotary Club of
Mornington, Victoria
Mornington is a suburb on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Mornington Peninsula local government area. Mornington recorded a populatio ...
, Scott was moved by the plight of families affected by
sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). To encourage further research on this problem, he proposed that Rotary establish a national research foundation with a corpus of A$2 million to fund health research, with a focus on family health problems.
Rotary accepted this proposal and Scott served as treasurer on the board of the Australian Rotary Health Research Fund (later called Australian Rotary Health). By 1995, ARH had raised enough money to fund its first grants, which went to research on SIDS.
Research supported by ARH led to a major decrease in mortality from SIDS in Australia.
[Jorm, A.F., Sawyer, M.G. & Gillett, J. (2011). Celebrating 30 years of Australian Rotary Health. Medical Journal of Australia, 194, 279-280.][Jorm, A.F., Sawyer, M.G. & Gillett, J. (2012). Australian Rotary Health: a major contributor to mental illness research and mental health awareness in Australia. Australasian Psychiatry, 20(4), 318-321.] ARH has subsequently supported research into a number of other areas, including environmental health problems of the aged, adolescent health, family health and mental illness.
It is currently the major non-government supporter of mental illness research in Australia.
By 2011, over A$24 million had been contributed to medical research in Australia.
Honours
In 1989, Ian Scott has made a Life Member of ARH, the organization's highest honour.
In 2000, ARH introduced Ian Scott PhD Scholarships to recognise Scott's service to Rotary and mankind. By 2011, 29 PhD students had received these scholarships.
In 2007, the Rotary Club of Mornington dedicated a gazebo in Mornington Memorial Park to the memory of Ian Scott.
References
External links
Australian Rotary HealthRotary Club of Mornington
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Ian
1933 births
Philanthropists from Melbourne
Rotary International leaders
Australian bankers
2001 deaths
20th-century Australian philanthropists