Thank you Graeme for all that you did for protected areas, for your tireless advocacy for connectivity, and for working so hard for nature and the planet. I will miss your thoughtful but passionate approach, your kindness and your sense of fun. You made an incredible contribution and will be greatly missed.

I had the privilege of working with Graeme on two occasions, the first edition of the book 'Management of Protected Areas', and then the 2nd edition almost a decade later, renamed 'Governance and Management of Protected Areas'. He was great to collaborate with ... patient, open to new ideas, gently firm about deadlines and commitments, and even though his illness, ever conscientious about informing us with regard to how the book was doing after publication. I also of course, like so many others, learnt much about 'connectivity conservation' from him and his work. We will miss him dearly, but he continues to live in the nuggets of knowledge and wisdom he gave us, through the rest of our lives.

Graeme or 'Worbs' as he was known by fellow Aussies, was one of my first bosses in Kosciuszko National Park back in 1981. I was in awe of him 40 years ago and still am – unfathomable reserves of energy, he was a whirlwind for conservation and an influential figure worldwide. Graeme worked closely with IUCN's World Heritage Programme as one of our most experienced field evaluators and conservation experts, yet another of his endless talents. He was an exceptionally great human being and we will miss that twinkle in the eye, his enthusiasm, passion and energy. Thank you, Graeme on behalf of all your friends and colleagues in the World Heritage community.

Graeme or 'Worbs' as he was known by fellow Aussies, was one of my first bosses in Kosciuszko National Park back in 1981. I was in awe of him 40 years ago and still am – unfathomable reserves of energy, he was a whirlwind for conservation and an influential figure worldwide. Graeme worked closely with IUCN's World Heritage Programme as one of our most experienced field evaluators and conservation experts, yet another of his endless talents. He was an exceptionally great human being and we will miss his twinkle in the eye, his enthusiasm, passion and energy. Thank you, Graeme on behalf of all your friends and colleagues in the World Heritage community.

Graeme was my close colleague for the last five years. That was my pleasure and a privilege. I will greatly miss his enthusiastic voice and cheerful laugh as we worked at ‘getting the story right’ for Kosciuszko: A Great National Park.
We were an accidental authorial team. Roger Good, Graeme and I talk about the project several times between 2013-2015, but we didn’t get far: trying to nail Graeme or Roger down to detail or deadlines was like herding cats as they were each committed to enough projects for ten people. I found out later that they had been talking about this book for at least fifteen years previously!
As I had been planning my own version of a history of Kosciuszko, following Roger’s death in 2015 I found myself committed to working with Graeme, whom I knew only slightly, on a major project, one with enormous personal significance for him. But I soon realised that anyone who shared Graeme's passionate interest in and commitment to the mountains was automatically a good friend and worthy colleague. The only enduring difficulty was in keeping up with someone who worked ten-hour days in ‘retirement’, was slightly furtive about his solemn promises to withdraw from several other major projects and roles, and frequently disappeared to Arkaroola, Patagonia and elsewhere, always promising to do more on his return. As his health declined, that was a problem.
We had different ideas, but Graeme always listened respectfully, argued strongly, persisted on some ideas but yielded gracefully on others. The important point was the quality of the outcome, not who was putting the argument. Graeme was always optimistic and positive in working out how to get the best outcome. That outcome was honouring unheralded people who cared for the mountains. He would only get angry at one thing: people who just didn’t care enough about them and their protection. ‘How dare they!’
He was one of those rare people of whom it can be said truly ‘He is irreplaceable’.

Graeme was a kind and wonderful person with an amazing feeling for mountains and people. He was incredibly helpful and supportive in my work with sacred mountains, and it was always a great pleasure to see him in person at mountain meetings at international conferences. I would have very much liked to have seen him more often, but living on different continents our interactions were often by email, which he kept up to his last days. I would like to think that he is traipsing around somewhere on the celestial heights of heavenly mountains.

Joining Graeme on a Committee at Charles Sturt Uni for several years in the late 90’s and later, working on tourism certification programs I was always taken by his passion, determination, attention to detail and his strong grounding in protected area management- across all levels. A great loss to the conservation and tourism sectors. But he has left such a great legacy through his lifetime contribution to these fields. Tony

Graeme was an attentive and insightful reader of our newsletter, each and every month since we launched it in 2008. Always a nice word and a useful comment to share. Despite the distance, we became friends and had great opportunities to work together on other topics, in a friendly and effective way. We will all miss him a lot.

The book - The Protected Area Governance and Management represents a telling moment and passion and Legacy of Graeme.

Always enjoyed the discussions, thoughts and willingness to think differently. He also contributed so much to the understanding of water and its broader value out of the Australian Alps.

You will be missed

Sad news in sad times... Graeme was a Nature champion, a generous and a gentle man, to whom we will always remember when talking about Mountain parks, Connectivity or parks' management. A WCPA giant like Larry Morris, to whom he brilliantly succeeded, master of many young conservationists, a good person and a friend to many of us.
"Que la tierra te sea leve", Graeme!

I am deeply saddened by this news. Conservation has lost a champion of protected areas, a scholar and a teacher. As many have noted already, Graeme has left behind an incredible legacy in his contributions to the field. And it was always such a pleasure to work with him.
Penny, thank you for your note, which so thoughtfully captured Graeme's character, commitment and passions, and helped us see that his final months and years held many positive moments.
It is inspiring to read the many tributes and reflections posted here, and to know that a collection of photos is being put together. I hope that these messages of condolence will be a comfort to Bev and the family during this time of loss.
My thoughts are with them now.