HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Ian Bruce Carrick Kiernan (4 October 1940 – 16 October 2018) was an Australian yachtsman, property developer, builder, and environmental campaigner, known for co-founding with Kim McKay the not-for-profit '' Clean Up Australia'' campaign in 1989 and, in 1993, a similar '' Clean Up the World'' operation, serving as the event's chairman, the annual initiative attracted participation from 30 million volunteers in 80 countries.


Early life

Kiernan was born in Sydney to George Arthur and Leslie Katherine Kiernan. He was educated at The Scots College in Sydney, The Armidale School in northern
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 ...
, and the Sydney Technical College, where he trained as a builder.


Career

Kiernan was a yachtsman, sailing competitively for more than 40 years and representing Australia at the Admiral's, Southern Cross, Dunhill, Clipper, Kenwood and Trans Pacific Cup competitions. In 1986/87 Kiernan represented Australia in the
BOC Challenge The Velux 5 Oceans Race was a round-the-world single-handed yacht race, sailed in stages, managed by Clipper Ventures since 2000. Its most recent name comes from its main sponsor Velux. Originally known as the BOC Challenge, for the title sponsor ...
solo around-the-world yacht race. He finished 6th out of a fleet of 25 yachts from 11 countries, setting an Australian record for a solo circumnavigation of the world.


Clean-up

During the BOC Challenge, Kiernan was appalled by the amount of rubbish choking the world's oceans. With the support of a committee of friends, he organised a community event – Clean Up Sydney Harbour on Sunday 8 January 1989. 40,000 volunteers turned out to help and collected over 5000 tonnes. The success of the first event in 1989 sparked national interest. Since then more than seven million people have heeded the call through annual Clean Up Australia Days, Friday Schools Clean Up Days and Business Clean Ups. Clean up Australia's mission is "To inspire and work with communities to clean up and fix up our Earth." The first "Clean Up the World" event took place in 1993. By 2007 some 35 million people from 80 nations turned out to clean up their part of the world and in 2017 it was estimated that 120 nations took part.


Awards

Kiernan's environmental efforts were recognised in 1991 when the Australian Government awarded him the Medal 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 Go ...
(OAM). He was awarded
Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territ ...
in 1994. During the ceremony he assisted the Premier of New South Wales, John Fahey, stopping a "pseudo assassination" attempt on
Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...
. In 1995, he was appointed an Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia. In 1998, Kiernan was the recipient of the UNEP Sasakawa Prize. The prize is awarded every year to individuals with an established track record of achievement and the potential to make outstanding contributions to the protection and management of the environment consistent with UNEP's policies and objectives. He received the
World Citizenship Award The World Citizenship Award is an award of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS). Launched in 1996, the award is given to people outside the Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting movement who have contributed to a better world in ...
from the
World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS ) is a global association supporting the female-oriented and female-only Guiding and Scouting organizations in 152 countries. It was established in 1928 in Parád, Hungary, and has its ...
in 1999. In 2001, Kiernan was awarded the
Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or g ...
for "service to the Clean Up Australia Campaign and the Clean up the World Campaign". In 2006 Kiernan received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Trust of Australia (NSW). The 2007 ''Reader's Digest'' "Most Trusted Poll" voted Clean Up Australia as the country's most trusted environmental charity and Kiernan as the fourth "most trustworthy" Australian. In 2008 in the same poll Kiernan was ranked number three. Kiernan was also the recipient of Toastmasters International Communications and Leadership Award, the Berger-Sullivan Tourism Award, the International Banksia Award and the 1999 Building World Citizenship Award.


Controversy

In 2014, Kiernan pleaded guilty to a
DUI Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...
charge in Sydney, following a previous charge for the same offence in 1998. This record was cited by the
New South Wales Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party and the National Party. The Governme ...
when Kiernan was overlooked for the honour of having a Sydney ferry named after him.


Death

He died on 16 October 2018 in Sydney at the age of 78. He is survived by his daughters Sally and Pip and son Jack.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiernan, Ian 1940 births 2018 deaths Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Officers of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Centenary Medal Australian of the Year Award winners Australian builders Australian environmentalists Australian soccer chairmen and investors Australian people of Irish descent People educated at Scots College (Sydney) Single-handed circumnavigating sailors Australian republicans