Joanna Hewitt

Joanna Hewitt
AO
Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
In office
2004–2007
Personal details
Born Joanna Miriam Hewitt
(1949-05-01) 1 May 1949
Denmark, Western Australia
Nationality Australia Australian
Spouse(s) Mark[1]
Children Three
Alma mater University of Western Australia
London School of Economics
Occupation Public servant

Joanna Miriam Hewitt AO (born 1 May 1949) is a former senior Australian public servant and policymaker. She is currently the Chair of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.

Background and early life

Joanna Hewitt was born in Denmark, Western Australia on 1 May 1949.[2][3][4] She was schooled and raised in rural Western Australia and Perth,[5] going on to study her undergraduate degree at the University of Western Australia. She later earned a master's degree in Economics from the London School of Economics.[4]

Career

Hewitt joined the Australian Public Service in 1972 as a trainee at the Department of Foreign Affairs.[5]

In 1998, she was appointed Australia's Ambassador for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the pre-eminent regional forum for economic and trade dialogue.[6]

Between 2000 and 2003 Hewitt was Australia’s Ambassador in Brussels, Belgium, and concurrently ambassador to the European Union and Luxembourg.[4]

In 2004 she was elevated to the position of Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.[7] She stayed in the role until 2007, resigning to join her husband in Washington DC who had a posting there.[8]

Hewitt is currently Chair of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.[9]

Awards

Hewitt was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2008 for service to the community, particularly through significant contributions to Australia's agricultural, forestry and fishing sectors, to cross departmental policy formulation and delivery, and to international relations through fostering diplomatic, trade and cultural interests'.[10]

In 2012, she was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Economics from the University of Western Australia.[3]

Notes

  1. Hewitt 2012, p. 51.
  2. Ms Joanna Hewitt: Ambassador to Belgium, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, archived from the original on 3 March 2001
  3. 1 2 Spring graduation ceremonies for almost 2000 students, University of Western Australia, 11 September 2012, archived from the original on 21 January 2014
  4. 1 2 3 Downer, Alexander (26 April 2000). "DIPLOMATIC APPOINTMENT: AMBASSADOR TO BELGIUM" (Press release). Archived from the original on 26 March 2012.
  5. 1 2 Malone 2006, p. 77.
  6. Fischer, Tim; Downer, Alexander (8 April 1998). "APPOINTMENT OF APEC AMBASSADOR" (Press release). Archived from the original on 24 March 2012.
  7. Howard, John (22 October 2004). "Appointment of Secretaries" (Press release). Archived from the original on 19 December 2013.
  8. Howard, John (26 April 2007). "Secretary Appointments" (Press release). Archived from the original on 19 December 2013.
  9. Ms Joanna Hewitt AO, Australian Centre for International Agriculture, archived from the original on 21 January 2014
  10. Search Australian Honours: HEWITT, Joanna Miriam, Australian Government

References and further reading

Government offices
Preceded by
Mike Taylor
Secretary of the
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

2004 – 2007
Succeeded by
Conall O'Connell
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Donald Kenyon
Australian Ambassador to Belgium
2000 – 2003
Succeeded by
Peter Gray
Preceded by
Peter Grey
Australian Ambassador for APEC
1998– 2000
Succeeded by
Pamela Fayle
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, September 12, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.