Research

Barry Osmond is a well-known Australian researcher in plant sciences; a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Sciences (1978), the Royal Society of London (1984) and the German National Academy of Sciences (2001). He studies photosynthesis, the miracle in which plants turn sunlight, air and water into bread and wine, fuel and fibre, and was chairman of Photosynthesis 2001, the first international congress in this field to be held in Australia, in Brisbane in August 2001.

His best-known contributions in about 250 research papers and 14 books deal with environmental plant physiology and ecology, especially in desert plants. His recent research dealing with the interaction of light with high temperature, water and nutritional stresses, and the underlying physiological and biochemical mechanisms responses to excess light, has been supported by a Forschungspreis from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and by grants from the US DOE. In retirement he is continuing research into photosynthetic processes in old leaves within the deeply shaded canopies of woody plants and development of new noninvasive remote sensing instruments.

Career

• since 2011 Professor of Plant Science Institute for Conservation Biology and Environmental Management, University of Wollongong NSW 2522, Australia (25%)
• 2005 Visiting Scientist, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany
• since 2004 Honorary Visiting Fellow, Division of Plant Sciences , Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia
• 2001-2003 President and Executive Director, Biosphere 2 Inc, Oracle Arizona USA; Professor of Earth Sciences Columbia University, New York City, USA
• 1998-2001 Honorary Visiting Fellow, Photobioenergetics, Research School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University Canberra  ACT 0200, Australia
• 1991-1998 Director,  Research School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University Canberra  ACT 0200, Australia
• 1987-1991 Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor, Department of Botany, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
• 1982-1986 Executive Director, Biological Sciences Center, Desert Research Institute, University of Nevada Reno, Nevada, USA (50%)
• 1982-1986 Professor, Department of Environmental Biology Research School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University, Canberra  ACT 0200, Australia (50%)
• 1978-1982 Professor and Head of  Department of Environmental Biology Research School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University, Canberra  ACT 0200, Australia
• 1967-1978 Research fellow, Fellow, Senior Fellow, Department of Environmental Biology Research School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Advanced Studies, Australian National University, Canberra  ACT 0200, Australia
• 1966-1967 Postdoctoral Fellow, Botany School University of Cambridge UK
• 1995-1996 Postdoctoral Fellow, Botanical Sciences UCLA, California USA
• 1962-1965 Graduate student PhD, University of Adelaide, Adelaide SA, Australia
• 1961-1962 Graduate student BSc hons, MSc, University of New England Armidale NSW, Australia

Projects

• 1972-2012 Member / Australian coordinator international research programs and conferences with USA, Germany UK, Japan, Indonesia, China and Estonia

Functions

• 2009-2012 Independent Member, Integrated Biological Systems Steering Committee; Science Advisory Board, Australian Plant Phenomics Facility
• 2005 Member Fachbeirat, Forschungszentrum, Jülich
• 2000-2005 Member Fachbeirat, Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Golm
• 1999-2007 Committee member, Treasurer, International Society of Photosynthesis Research
• 1999-2004 Reviewer, Centre of Excellence Program University of Tsukuba and National Institute of Basic Biology Okazaki
• 1994-1996 President, Australian Society of Plant Physiologists
• 1993 Chairman, Gordon Conference on Photosynthetic CO2 Fixation and Metabolism, Irsee (first conference in this series to be held outside USA; now turnabout USA and Europe)

Honours and Memberships

• 2008 Life Member Australian Society of Plant Scientists
• since 2001 Member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina
• 1997 Clarke Prize (Botany) Royal Society of New South Wales, UK
• 1996 Forschungspreis, Alexander von Humboldt Stiftung
• 1994 Inaugural Distinguished Alumnus, University of New England, USA
• 1984 Fellow, Royal Society of London, UK
• 1978 Fellow, Australian Academy of Science
• 1974 Edgeworth David Medal, Royal Society of New South Wales, UK
• 1973-1974 Australia-America Educational Foundation Senior Scholar UCSC, Carnegie Institution of Washington Fellow Stanford
• 1972 Goldacre Award and Medal, Australian Society of Plant Physiologists