Zihni Jusuf Buzo (1912-2006) was an

Albanian Australian Albanian Australians ( sq, Shqiptarë Australian) are residents of Australia who have Albanian heritage or descent; many are from Albania and North Macedonia but some are from Kosovo, Montenegro, Greece, Turkey, Bosnia and Italy. Albanian Austr ...

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

Biography

Zihni Jusuf Buzo was born (1912) in the neighbourhood of Murat Çelepia in

Berat Berat (; sq-definite, Berati) is the ninth most populous city of Albania and the seat of Berat County and Berat Municipality. By air, it is north of Gjirokastër, west of Korçë, south of Tirana, and east of Fier. Berat is located in th ...

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

. In Albania, Buzo attended primary school in Berat. In his youth, Buzo was a member of the Albanian boy scouts. He attended the Harry Fultz school in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

and achieved good results earning Buzo a scholarship to study at the American

Robert College The American Robert College of Istanbul ( tr, İstanbul Özel Amerikan Robert Lisesi or ), often shortened to Robert, or RC, is a Selective school, highly selective, Independent school, independent, mixed-sex education, co-educational Secondary ...

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. Buzo graduated with honours and gained a scholarship from the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...

to study at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in the US. He graduated university with good grades and as a result of social connections made at Harvard, Buzo was employed by an Anglo-American company as a civil engineer in Albania. Water supply projects were the area where Buzo worked on in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and Albania, in particular to combat

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

and he had a keen interest in environmental impacts. He worked in Albania (1935-1939) until the World War II occupation of the country by Axis forces and company employees including Buzo left the country. Buzo migrated to Australia and worked as a civil engineer, often involved in projects within the

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

region of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. He got a position at New England University in

Armidale Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale had a population of 24,504 as of June 2018. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region. It ...

, NSW. In northern NSW, Buzo joined the Oaky River Hydro Electric Scheme. Although the project experienced some environmental and fiscal challenges, Buzo developed a design and implemented the dam's construction on the

Oaky River Oaky River, a perennial stream of the Macleay River catchment, is located in the Northern Tablelands district of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Oaky River rises on the southern slopes of Round Mountain, the highest peak of the ...

during the 1950s. The completed dam provided thousands of people in Armidale with electricity. Buzo filmed the dam construction from beginning to end. After Buzo's death in 2006, the footage was acquired by the Australian

National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...

and made into a film about the dam and his life in 2015. From the 1960s onward, Buzo was employed at the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

for fourteen years and worked on public health projects spanning more than forty countries in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. During the 1990s, Buzo was involved in lobbying activities and participated in Albanian community delegations where he met Australia's Foreign Minister Gareth Evans and raised the issue of Kosovo and its Albanian population multiple times. He helped numerous

Albanians The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Se ...

from Albania settle in Australia.

Personal life

In 1941, Buzo met Elaine Johnson, an Australian teacher of

Irish descent The Irish ( ga, Muintir na hÉireann or ''Na hÉireannaigh'') are an ethnic group and nation native to the island of Ireland, who share a common history and culture. There have been humans in Ireland for about 33,000 years, and it has been co ...

and both married the following year. The couple had two sons,

Alex Buzo Alexander John Buzo (23 July 194416 August 2006) was an Australian playwright and author who wrote 88 works. His literary works recorded Australian culture through wit, humour and extensive use of colloquial Australian English. Biography Ear ...

(1944-2006), a writer and playwright born in Sydney, and Adrian Buzo (born 1948, Brisbane), a

Korean studies Korean studies is an academic discipline that focuses on the study of Korea, which includes the Republic of Korea, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and diasporic Korean populations. Areas commonly included under this rubric include Ko ...

scholar and former Australian diplomat. In the

1991 Australia Day Honours The 1991 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 1991 by the Governor General of Australia, Bill Hayden. The Australia Day ...

, Buzo's contribution toward the community was recognised in Australia and he was awarded 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 ...

medal. Buzo was a member of the

American Society of Civil Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Engineers Australia Engineers Australia (EA) is an Australian professional body and not-for-profit organisation whose purpose is to advance the science and practice of engineering for the benefit of the community. Engineers Australia is Australia's recognized org ...

bestowed Buzo with a Honorary Fellowship, an award he cherished above others as it was from his colleagues. Buzo died in July 2006.

External sources

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buzo, Zihni 1912 births 2006 deaths People from Berat People from Armidale 20th-century Albanian people 21st-century Albanian people 20th-century Australian people 21st-century Australian people Harvard University alumni Albanian engineers Australian civil engineers Australian people of Albanian descent Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia