Lt. Gen. (Ret'd) David Morrison AO
"I probably started what has now been a lifelong journey into exploring what literature and the study of history can give you during the passage of life."
Lieutenant General (Retired) David Morrison AO studied at the ANU in the 1970s and later became Chief of the Australian Army. In 2016, he was honoured for his commitment to gender equality, diversity and inclusion and conferred the Australian of the Year award. In the same year, he was named ANU Alumnus of the Year.
Morrison graduated from ANU in 1979, immediately joined the army and graduated from the Officer Cadet School, Portsea to the Royal Australian Infantry Corps. He served in the Army for 36 years and held senior positions including Australian Instructor at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, United Kingdom in 1987-88 and Colonel Operations, Headquarters International Force East Timor (INTERFET) in 1999.
Morrison was Commander, Australian Defence College in 2006 and Chief of Army between 2011 and 2015. His awards include Commander of the Legion of Merit (USA), Meritorious Service Medal (Singapore) and Officer of the Legion of Honour (France).
He is a board member of Our Watch, which works to end violence against women and children, has since 2013 been a member of the Male Champions of Change which advocates for gender equality and in 2015 became Chair of the Diversity Council of Australia.
“My time at ANU was a pivotal moment in my life, no doubt,” Morrison said.
“I think I probably started what has now been a lifelong journey into exploring what literature and the study of history can give you during the passage of life, and I’m deeply grateful to the ANU for starting me on that journey.”
