A few notes about Ian Robottom

It is difficult to condense the professional life of someone who has served environmental education for more than 20 years-of someone who has made presentations at more than 30 international conferences and published more than 100 academic papers. So, let's focus on just a few milestones.

Ian Robottom was instrumental in opening up intellectual space for creative approaches to environmental education research, particularly as the founding editor of the Australian Journal of Environmental Education, and as the editor of a little monograph published in 1987 called Environmental Education: Practice and possibility. Following these publications, he was exceedingly active, supporting new scholars and colleagues who sought good scholarship in uncharted territories. During this period-the 1990s especially-Ian was one of the most quoted authors for those stretching boundaries of innovative research.

In 1993, he co-authored with Paul Hart a book entitled Research in Environmental Education: Engaging the debate. Emerging researchers continually return to this document as they seek to clarify questions and strengthen their methodologies. It is still a powerful tool, one that many have found useful for discovering and shaping their own research directions.

Ian really did "engage the debate;" he is a tenacious logician. This was a challenging and sometimes turbulent time. However, the debates were always, above all, about improving environmental education. And, Ian Robottom has. Ian's intellectual curiosity, tenacity, and courage have invigorated environmental education research. This award celebrates his many contributions.