Moira Lenore Dynon (; 4 September 1920 – 23 October 1976) was an Australian chemist and community activist. The daughter of Percy Shelton and Lily Johnston, she was born Moira Lenore Shelton in

Elsternwick Elsternwick is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government area. Elsternwick recorded a population of 10,887 at the 2021 ...

and was educated there, in Toorak and at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, where she received a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in 1941. She joined the

Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) was formed in March 1941 after considerable lobbying by women keen to serve, as well as by the Chief of the Air Staff, who wanted to release male personnel serving in Australia for service ov ...

, where she was responsible for inspection, management and training in the use of chemical weapons. After returning to civilian life, she worked in research for the

Commonwealth Serum Laboratories CSL Limited is an Australian multinational specialty biotechnology company that researches, develops, manufactures, and markets products to treat and prevent serious human medical conditions. CSL's product areas include blood plasma derivative ...

and then for the

Council for Scientific and Industrial Research The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is South Africa's central and premier scientific research and development organisation. It was established by an act of parliament in 1945 and is situated on its own campus in the cit ...

. She married John Dynon in 1950; the couple had five children. In 1960, she organized a campaign to provide high school education for Japanese children fathered by Australian servicemen. From 1961 to 1967, she was president of the women's division of the Italo-Australian Welfare Association. She was chair of the Aid for India campaign and later served as president of Aid India. She was also involved in various campaigns for famine relief in south Asia. In 1967, she was appointed Knight of the

Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity The Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity ( it, Stella della solidarietà italiana ) was founded as a national order by the first President of the Italian Republic, Enrico De Nicola, in 1947, to recognise civilian and military expatriates or ...

. Dynon died of cancer in

Malvern Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...

at the age of 56.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dynon, Moira L 1920 births 1976 deaths Australian chemists Australian women chemists Deaths from cancer in Victoria (state) Community activists 20th-century women scientists 20th-century Australian women People from Elsternwick, Victoria Scientists from Melbourne University of Melbourne alumni Australian activists Activists from Melbourne