Former WFEO President Dr Marlene Kanga AO has been awarded the Peter Nicol Russell Memorial Medal, the highest honour given by the WFEO National Member Engineers Australia (EA) to an individual member, at its national award ceremony on 21 November 2024.
The medal is named after Sir Peter Nicol Russell, a Sydney industrialist during the latter half of the 19th century who made major donations to the cause of engineering in Australia. It has been awarded annually since 1923.
Announcement of the Peter Nicol Russell Memorial Medal being awarded to Dr Marlene Kanga AO, Brisbane Town Hall, 21 November 2024
Marlene Kanga said: “For someone who arrived in Australia, knowing no one, with nowhere to stay, with one hundred dollars in my pocket and applying for jobs advertised for men and boys – this is a significant achievement. I didn’t know it then, but I would have been the first female engineer to have been employed in almost every company I applied to. Despite the many barriers I have had to overcome, what has driven me throughout my career is my enjoyment of the intellectual challenges that engineering provides, the never-ending and fascinating problems that always require new and innovative solutions and most importantly, to have a positive impact.”
Announcement of the Peter Nicol Russell Memorial Medal being awarded to Dr Marlene Kanga AO, Brisbane 21 November 2024
As WFEO President, Dr Kanga successfully initiated and led the proposal for UNESCO to declare 4th March, the founding day of WFEO as World Engineering Day for Sustainable Development, which attracted more than 70 million engineers in social media celebrations in 2024.
Dr Kanga is currently Chair of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, international Safety Centre, with more than 100 members globally, leading best practices in process safety engineering. She is Co-Chair of Elevate, a programme for advancing women in STEM in Australia, funded by the Australian Department of Science, Industry, Innovation and Resources.
Article by Dr Marlene Kanga AO FTSE FREng, Former WFEO President, 2017-2019
For more information:
The article “Kanga awarded Engineers Australia’s highest honour” | The Chemical Engineer
The World Engineering Day website
DEC
2024