Graham Shimmield (1958-2016)
Colleagues in the School of GeoSciences remember Dr. Graham Shimmield, former member of staff in the Department of Geology and Geophysics.
It is with incredible sadness that we report the passing of Dr. Graham Shimmield. We remember Graham as an outstanding marine geochemist, an excellent teacher, a 'hard-as-nails' mountaineer, and a wonderfully compassionate and generous friend to many of us. In Edinburgh, Graham showed leadership in exploring new avenues of teaching in ocean sciences. He was very much liked by colleagues and students.
Graham Shimmield was born in Pointe-a-Pierre, Trinidad, on Dec 1, 1958. He received a BSc in 1981 from the University of Durham, and a Ph.D. from the University of Edinburgh working with Dr. Brian Price in 1984 and continued in Edinburgh as a lecturer. His research focused on identifying indicators of climate change and examining human impacts on the ocean.
In 1997, Graham left the Department of Geology and Geophysics to become Executive Director of the Scottish Association for Marine Science in Oban, and then went on to take up the Executive Directorship of the Bigelow Laboratory in Maine in 2008 – a role he continued to his end.
During his tenure, he transformed these organizations, building upon their scientific reputation, setting new direction and expanding their research and teaching capacity. Recent examples include the development of a $32 million marine research and education campus in East Boothbay, Maine, which opened in 2012, along with a $6 million residence facility that will open in spring 2017.
Graham was an accomplished scientist and a visionary leader. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology, and a recipient of the prestigious Plymouth Marine Sciences Partnership Medal.
He is a globally-recognised leader in ocean sciences and held an array of leadership positions with national and international groups during his career, including president and vice president of the European Federation of Marine Sciences and Technology Societies; chairman of the European Census of Marine Life; member of the board of trustees and executive committee for the Consortium for Ocean Leadership; and chairman of the International Science Advisory Board for the Decommissioning of Man-Made Structures in the North Sea, Oil & Gas. In 2013, he was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in Washington, DC.
The ocean science community lost an irreplaceable champion and a generous and kind-hearted colleague. His leadership contribution to marine sciences will not be forgotten.