James Sunter Muecke (born 1963) is an Australian

ophthalmologist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgery, surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Followin ...

working in

Adelaide, South Australia Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

. He was the 2020 Australian of the Year, having been

South Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year Award is given annually on Australia Day. The national award is a major public event, televised nationwide. The Award also operates at the State level. This page lists winners of the South Australia state award, who a ...

. He was sworn in as

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

's new

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

on 27 January 2022, succeeding Brenda Wilson.

Early life

Muecke was born in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

and raised in

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

. He lived in

Washington DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

as a child while his father worked for the Australian embassy. He attended Canberra Grammar School from 1976 to 1981. After failing to get into medicine at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

by one mark, Muecke returned to Adelaide to study medicine at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, graduating in 1987. He later trained as an

at the

Royal Adelaide Hospital The Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH), colloquially known by its initials or pronounced as "the Rah", is South Australia's largest hospital, owned by the state government as part of Australia's public health care system. The RAH provides tertiary hea ...

and subspecialty training in

eye cancer Eye neoplasms can affect all parts of the eye, and can be a benign tumor or a malignant tumor (cancer). Eye cancers can be primary (starts within the eye) or metastatic cancer (spread to the eye from another organ). The two most common cancers th ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Professional life

Muecke began his career working in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

for 12 months. After his ophthalmology training, he worked for a year at Saint John Eye Hospital in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, including taking "outreach eye clinics" into refugee camps in the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

and

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

. He returned to

and became an eye surgeon, working in private practice and as a visiting consultant at the Royal Adelaide and Women's and Children's Hospitals. In 2000, Muecke founded Vision Myanmar at the South Australian Institute of Ophthalmology. In 2008, this evolved into Sight For All, a social impact organisation dedicated to fighting the causes of blindness with projects in Aboriginal and mainstream Australian communities, as well as training and equipping eye surgeons throughout Africa and Asia. Muecke is Chair and co-founder of Sight for All. Working with

AusAID Australian Aid is the brand name used to identify projects in developing countries supported by the Australian Government. As of 2014 the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has been responsible for Australia's official development ...

funding and the co-operation of both country's governments, Muecke created a program to create more than 30 specialist eye centres in

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

to treat

cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble w ...

blindness. In the 2012 Queen's Birthday Honours, Muecke was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM). He received the

's Vice-Chancellor's Alumni Award in 2019. In November 2019, Muecke was named

for 2020. In January 2020, he was named Australian of the Year for his work in preventing blindness. He had planned to speak at events around the country throughout the year, but the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

meant most of his presentations outside Adelaide were delivered online. On being appointed Australian of the Year, Muecke immediately advocated for a tax on sugary drinks in the fight against

Type 2 diabetes Type 2 diabetes, formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent urinatio ...

, which is the leading cause of blindness among Australian adults. He advocated for TV commercials for unhealthy products to be limited to certain hours, and asks supermarket chains to curb their "predatory sales and marketing tactics", without success.

Australia Post Australia Post, formally the Australian Postal Corporation, is the government business enterprise that provides postal services in Australia. The head office of Australia Post is located in Bourke Street, Melbourne, which also serves as a post o ...

did remove junk food from their checkouts following a meeting with him. In late November 2020, he gave a controversial speech to the

National Press Club Organizations A press club is an organization for journalists and others professionally engaged in the production and dissemination of news. A press club whose membership is defined by the press of a given country may be known as a National Press ...

outlining what he described as the country's "flawed, biased and unscientific" Australian Dietary Guidelines. He also brought his concerns to the

Health Minister A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Count ...

Greg Hunt Gregory Andrew Hunt (born 18 November 1965) is a former Australian politician who was the Minister for Health between January 2017 and May 2022. He was a Liberal Party member of the House of Representatives between November 2001 and 2022, repre ...

. He was credited by Hunt in the launching of a new ten-year National Diabetes Plan in November 2021. Muecke is also a key contributor to

Australian Community Media Australian Community Media (ACM) is a media company in Australia responsible for over 160 regional publications. Its mastheads include the ''Canberra Times'', ''Newcastle Herald'', '' The Examiner'', '' The Border Mail'', '' The Courier'' and ...

's "Silent Assassin" series on the causes and consequences of Australia's type 2 diabetes epidemic. In 2016, Muecke had to stop conducting surgeries due to an inherited neurological condition (

focal dystonia Focal dystonia, or focal task specific dystonia, is a neurological condition, a type of '' dystonia'', that affects a muscle or group of muscles in a specific part of the body during specific activities, causing involuntary muscular contractions an ...

) impacting use of his right hand. On 20 January 2022, the

Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...

, Steven Marshall, announced that Muecke would be the state's new

, succeeding Brenda Wilson. The role is appointed for a term at the "Governor's pleasure" and acts as vice-regal representative in the Governor's absence.

Awards and honours

* Outstanding Service in Prevention of Blindness Award, Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology, 2011 * Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

, 2012 * South Australian Community Achievement Award, 2021 * Australian Medical Association President's Leadership Award, 2013 * Pride of Australia Medal finalist, 2014 *

Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewaterh ...

Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award, 2015 *

Adelaide University The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

Distinguished Alumni-Vice Chancellor's Award, 2019 * 2020

* 2020 Australian of the Year * Honorary Doctorate, Adelaide University, 2021

Personal life

Muecke is married to Mena, a former architect who is Sight for All's events director, and they have two sons. He is a keen amateur photographer and has held exhibitions and self-published a coffee table book, which helped fund a children's eye unit in Myanmar.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Muecke, James Scientists from Adelaide Australian surgeons Australian of the Year Award winners Members of the Order of Australia Australian ophthalmologists Living people People educated at Canberra Grammar School University of Adelaide Medical School alumni Lieutenant-Governors of South Australia 1963 births