1922 - 2012
The biotechnology community is today mourning the loss of the distinguished and highly-respected “legend” of Australian biotechnology, Emeritus Professor Nancy Millis, after she passed away on the weekend.
Professor Millis was an active member of AusBiotech and an honorary life member. Dr Anna Lavelle, CEO of AusBiotech said: “Emeritus Professor Nancy Millis made a vast contribution to biotechnology as one of the pioneers of fermentation technology study in Australia, she created the first applied microbiology course taught in an Australian university. The Millis Oration held at the annual AusBiotech conference is named in honour of Nancy’s contribution to the industry.”
Professor Millis had an illustrious, long and varied career, which commenced with the pioneering study of biotechnology in Australia and culminated in her appointment as the Chancellor of La Trobe University from 1992, a position she held until her retirement in 2006.
Professor Millis’ areas of interest lay in the general field of biotechnology, more specifically in fermentation, wastewater and environmental biotechnology. Melbourne-born Professor Millis was originally refused entry into a bachelor of science, but instead gained entry to the degree of agricultural science at The University of Melbourne. In 1945 she graduated with a BAgSc, and went on to complete a master's degree studying the soil organism, Pseudomonas in 1946.
Professor Millis then worked in Papua New Guinea with the Department of External Affairs teaching women agricultural methods, but her posting was cut short by serious illness that almost claimed her life and she was airlifted to hospital in Brisbane. After recovering she applied for a Boots Research Scholarship at the University of Bristol, where she spent three years at Bristol working on the fermentation of cider and microoganisms.
When she completed her PhD at the University of Bristol in 1951, Professor Millis returned to Australia; she had hoped to work for Carlton United Brewery, but at that time they did not employ women in their laboratories. She joined the Department of Microbiology at the University of Melbourne in 1952. She worked as a demonstrator and then as a lecturer, setting up the Applied Microbiology course at the university until 1982. In 1954 Millis was awarded a Fulbright Travel Grant, went to Hopkins Marine Station at Stanford and worked with C B Van Neil, and then to the Institute of Applied Microbiology at the University of Tokyo.
In 1982, she was made a Professor of Microbiology, making her the fourth woman to be appointed as a Professor at the University of Melbourne, a position that she held until 1987. In 1988 she was made Emeritus Professor of the University of Melbourne and in 1993, the university awarded her an honorary Doctorate of Science.
CEO of Bio21 Cluster at the University of Melbourne, Dr Jan Tennent, said Professor Millis was the “undisputed First Lady of biotechnology and an inspiration to women in science.”
During her career she was appointed MBE - Member of The Order of the British Empire (Civil) in 1976 for her work in biological sciences and education and appointed AC - Companion of the Order of Australia in 1990. She was a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and an Honorary Life Member of the Australian Society for Microbiology.
With growing public concern over the safety of GM, the Genetic Manipulation Advisory Committee was founded in the early ‘80s. Nancy was ideally placed to head up the regulatory body and from 1981-2001 she chaired the Commonwealth government's agency for the surveillance of genetic engineering.
In an interview with the ABC’s Catalyst program in 2010, Professor Millis said of the appointment:
“…my task is looking at the risks, trying to identify them as broadly as I could and make sure that we conducted the experiments in the safest possible way.”
In January 2002, a postage stamp was issued in her honour as part of the Australian Legends special stamp issue. Every year Australia Post celebrates the achievements of important Australians with a special stamp issue and in 2002 the award went to five medical scientists: Sir Gustav Nossal; Nancy
Millis; Fiona Stanley; Peter Doherty; and Donald Metcalf. Australia Post says: “These quiet heroes' great achievements benefit many people, both in Australia and around the world.”
In response to the recognition, Professor Millis said: “I had a phone call saying would I be willing to be on a stamp. I thought good grief how on earth did this happen? I was even further astonished because I was in the same gallery of all of these distinguished folk. Well I just was astonished... and delighted of course.”
Professor Millis has been a member of the Board of Management of the Fairfield Infectious
Diseases Hospital, the Australian Water Advisory Resources Committee, the Cooperative
Research Centre for Freshwater Ecology, the Council of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences, the National Commission for UNESCO and many other professional organisations.
Professor Millis will be sadly missed by the biotechnology community in Australia.
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