Professor Paul William Wellings CBE DL FRSN FRSA FAICD is an Australian/British

ecologist Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

and long serving university leader. He is notable for his past service as

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

University of Wollongong The University of Wollongong (abbreviated as UOW) is an Australian public research university located in the coastal city of Wollongong, New South Wales, approximately 80 kilometres south of Sydney. As of 2017, the university had an enrolment of ...

(2012-21), Vice-Chancellor of

Lancaster University , mottoeng = Truth lies open to all , established = , endowment = £13.9 million , budget = £317.9 million , type = Public , city = Bailrigg, City of Lancaster , country = England , coor = , campus = Bailrigg , faculty ...

(2002-12) and Deputy Chief Executive of Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (1999-2002). Education Wellings was born in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

on 1 November 1953 and grew up in India and Nigeria. He was educated at

Lancaster Royal Grammar School Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is a selective grammar school (day and boarding) for boys aged 11–18 in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS i ...

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

(BSc Joint Hons, Zoology and Botany),

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills ( Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_cha ...

(MSc Advanced Ecology) and the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

(UEA) (PhD, 1980). His PhD "Qualitative changes in the regulation of Sycamore aphid numbers" was supervised by Professor Tony Dixon. Career He was awarded a NERC Personal Fellowship on life-history theory at UEA. In 1981 Wellings resigned his fellowship to take up a position in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

as a research ecologist at the

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government agency responsible for scientific research. CSIRO works with leading organisations around the world. From its headquarters in Canberra, CSIRO ...

(CSIRO), specialising in biological control. He was appointed Chief of CSIRO's Entomology Division in 1995. In 1997 he was seconded to the Australian Commonwealth Government Department of Industry, Science and Resources as Head of the Science and Innovation Policy Division and in 1999 returned to CSIRO as Deputy Chief Executive. In 2002 he moved to England to take up the position of Vice-Chancellor at Lancaster University. He held this post until his appointment at the University of Wollongong, NSW. He has been of Director of the

Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) is a statutory body of the Australian government, formed in 1987 to replace the Australian Atomic Energy Commission. Its head office and main facilities are in southern out ...

(ANSTO), the

Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) is an Australian Government statutory agency in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio, reporting to thMinister of Foreign Affairs ACIAR was established under t ...

(ACIAR),the Cumbrian Rural Regeneration Company, the Bundanon Trust, University of Wollongong Global Enterprises, the General Sir John Monash Foundation and the Global Foundation. During his academic career he was a board member of

Universities UK Universities UK (UUK) is an advocacy organisation for universities in the United Kingdom. It began life in the early 20th century through informal meetings of vice-chancellors of a number of universities and principals of university colleges and ...

and chair of UUK's International and European Policy Committee, and a board member of

Higher Education Funding Council for England The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engla ...

(HEFCE) and Chair of HEFCE's Research Committee, Chair of the 1994 Group of research-intensive universities and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, convener of NSW Vice-Chancellors Committee. Honours and Distinctions Wellings was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to higher education. and Deputy lieutenant of Lancashire (2009).Four new deputy lieutenants for Lancashire appointed
/ref> In 2018 Professor Wellings was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales. He holds honorary degrees from the Universities of Lancaster (2014), Surrey (2019), Wollongong (2021) and East Anglia (2022), and was awarded the 2020 CASE Asia-Pacific Leadership Award. Portraits of Professor Wellings hang at Lancaster University (

Tai-Shan Schierenberg Tai-Shan Schierenberg (born 1962) is a British portrait painter, based in London. He was the joint winner of the 1989 BP Portrait Award and is Head of Painting at the Art Academy in London. Early life and career Tai-Shan Schierenberg was born i ...

, 2011) and the University of Wollongong (

Sally Robinson Sally Robinson (born 1952) is an English-born Australian artist. She has had a long career as a portrait artist and designer, painter and printmaker, teacher and lecturer. Her work is represented in private and public collections around Austral ...

, 2021). The University of Wollongong's Molecular Sciences building is named in honour of its former Vice-Chancellor. Personal Life Paul Wellings is married to linguist and designer, Annette Schmidt. His Great Uncle was the English professional football player, Sam Wynne.

Footnotes

References

Lancaster University VCHEFCE page on Paul Wellings
1953 births Living people People educated at Lancaster Royal Grammar School Alumni of King's College London Alumni of the University of East Anglia British ecologists Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Deputy Lieutenants of Lancashire People associated with Lancaster University Vice Chancellors of the University of Wollongong Alumni of Durham University Graduate Society {{UK-academic-bio-stub