John Dee – Do Something!
- On August 2, 2015
Jon Dee was the 2010 NSW Australian of the Year. As one of Australia’s most influential environmentalists, he’s taught millions of Australians that they have the ability to effect real and positive change in their daily lives. Indeed, every time you turn on a light or do your laundry, you’ll be touched by the results of one of his campaigns.
Together with Olivia Newton-John he founded National Tree Day, an event that has planted 16 million trees. He has been the main driving force behind the campaign to ban plastic bags – this has brought about bans on plastic bags in four states and territories. He has successfully lobbied for the introduction of hundreds of natural gas buses and was the Australian front person for the DVD launch of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth.
As the Founder and Managing Director of the Australian advocacy organisation Do Something!, Jon’s current role is bringing about social and environmental change. His most recent success was co-organising the campaign to stop the NSW Government cutting the solar power tariff by a third. This saved $470 million for the Australians who’d gone out and installed solar panels on their rooftops.
Back in 1991, Jon co-founded Planet Ark with his good friend Pat Cash. Before leaving to start Do Something!, he headed up Planet Ark for 15 years, turning it into an Australian household name.