Another Abbottalypse moment has arrived, via the SMH:
Academics at the University of Western Australia have demanded its hierarchy explain how “sceptical environmentalist” Bjorn Lomborg was appointed as an adjunct professor for a new “consensus centre”…
…In a letter to David Harrison, UWA’ s head of corporate and government affairs, obtained by Fairfax Media, the head of the School of Animal Biology Sarah Dunlop said one international research fellow is already set to transfer their fellowship to another institution in protest.
…”The school would therefore like to know by what process the appointment was made and did it take the quality of Dr Lomborg’s research track record into account?” the letter asks.
…”It appears that $4m has been awarded without undergoing independent peer-review. Peer review is essential as it minimises conflict and bias and is at the very heart of Australian and, indeed international, world class standards for the ethical conduct of research,” she wrote.
Professor Dunlop continued: “Existing PhD students in the school are concerned that this appointment will tarnish their accomplishments as graduates from this university. In addition, staff in the school have been inundated by correspondence from collaborators and stakeholders concerned about the University’s decision.”
Leaked documents from UWA also revealed this week that it was the Abbott government’s idea to create the think tank, and not the university’s, as a spokesman for Mr Pyne had originally indicated.
I won’t comment on the suitability of Mr Lomborg. What we might observe is that this has all of the modus operandi of the failing Abbott Government:
- ideology over reason;
- bad judgement from on-high versus transparent process, and
- deep climate change hostility.
Coming into the Paris climate talks it is another reminder that Australia will be a (if not “the”) key spoiler.
