Megan Elizabeth Clark is an Australian

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

and business executive, former director of the

CSIRO The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government agency that is responsible for scientific research and its commercial and industrial applications. CSIRO works with leading organisations arou ...

, and former head of the

Australian Space Agency The Australian Space Agency is an agency of the Australian Government responsible for the development of Australia's commercial aerospace industry, coordinating domestic space activities, identifying opportunities and facilitating internatio ...

Early life and education

Clark was educated at

Presbyterian Ladies' College, Perth The Presbyterian Ladies' College (informally known as PLC), is an independent, day and boarding school predominantly for girls, situated in Peppermint Grove, a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Established in 1915 by the Presbyteri ...

. Clark was awarded a BSc (Hons) in Economic Geology at the

University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...

in 1981, and a Doctorate in Economic Geology at Queen's University,

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

in 1987.

Career

She began her career as a mine geologist and subsequently worked in mineral exploration, mine geology, R&D management, venture capital and technical strategy areas with Western Mining Corporation. Clark also worked in a corporate venture fund with

Advent International Advent International Corporation is an American global private equity firm. It is focused on buyouts of companies in Western and Central Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on international buyouts, growth and strat ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. She was then a director of

Rothschild & Co Rothschild & Co SCA is a multinational Private banking, private and alternative assets investor, headquartered in Paris, France and London, United Kingdom. It is the flagship of the Rothschild banking group controlled by the British and French br ...

(Australia) and was Vice-president Technology and subsequently Vice-president Health, Safety, Environment, Community and Sustainability with

BHP BHP Group Limited, founded as the Broken Hill Proprietary Company, is an Australian multinational mining and metals corporation. BHP was established in August 1885 and is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria. As of 2024, BHP was the world� ...

from 2003 to 2008. Clark was a member of the prime minister's Science, Engineering and Innovation Council, as well as the prime minister's Taskforce on Manufacturing. She is also a commissioner on the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change, a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and a fellow of the

Australian Institute of Company Directors The Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) is a non-profit membership organization for directors. The AICD is a founding member of the Global Network of Director Institutes (GNDI). History The origins of the AICD can be traced ba ...

. In 2009 she was appointed Chief Executive of the

, making her its first female chief executive. Under her leadership CSIRO was credited for a number of new ventures, including wireless research. Since 2014, she has been a non-executive director of Rio Tinto. As a Rio Tinto board member, she began serving as chairman of the Sustainability Committee in May 2016, and has become a member of the Remuneration Committee with effect from 1 May 2016. Clark was one of the Directors of Rio Tinto in May 2020 when the mining company deliberately destroyed the

Australian Aboriginal sacred site An Australian Aboriginal sacred site is a place deemed significant and meaningful by Aboriginal Australians based on their beliefs. It may include any feature in the landscape, and in coastal areas, these may lie underwater. The site's status i ...

Juukan Gorge Juukan Gorge is a gorge in the Hamersley Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, about from Tom Price, Western Australia, Tom Price. It was named by the daughter of Puutu Kunti Kurrama man Juukan, also known as Tommy Ashburton, who w ...

– the only inland site in Australia to show signs of continuous human occupation for over 46,000 years. Ten months after the event, and following a significant protest vote against Clark, with more than a quarter of shareholders voting against her re-election, she admitted to feeling regret, saying "it is hard to even explain the level of hurt and shame that we feel and the shame that I personally feel." The Rio Tinto board noted in response to the vote that "Rio Tinto acknowledges that the reduced vote for Dr Clark's re-election compared to previous years reflects the fact that, as chair of the Sustainability Committee at the time that the rock shelters at Juukan Gorge were destroyed, Dr Clark shares accountability for the failings in the areas of communities and social performance that led to those events occurring." On 14 May 2018, it was announced that she would head the

, after leading the 2017 review into Australia's space capabilities.

Awards

In the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours List, Clark was appointed a

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AC), for "eminent service to scientific research and development through fostering innovation, to science administration through strategic leadership roles, and to the development of public policy for technological sciences".

Personal life

Clark is married to Trent Hutchinson who is also a graduate of Queens University.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Megan 1958 births 21st-century Australian geologists Scientists from Perth, Western Australia People educated at Presbyterian Ladies' College, Perth University of Western Australia alumni Queen's University at Kingston alumni Companions of the Order of Australia Fellows of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering CSIRO people 21st-century Australian women public servants 21st-century Australian public servants Living people Fellows of the Australian Institute of Company Directors Australian women geologists Chancellors of Monash University