The Albanese Labor Government has today announced the appointment of celebrated Australian author and filmmaker Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO as Chair to the Council of the National Library of Australia from November 2024.
The Hon Dr Brett Mason has also been reappointed as a member of the Council and will continue as Chair until Professor Behrendt's term commences.
Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke, said Professor Behrendt was the ideal candidate to be the next Chair.
"The National Library houses some of the country's most important collections and is the custodian of Trove - connecting people to artefacts and stories from cultural institutions right across the country.
"Professor Behrendt has been a great asset to the Council thus far, and as the new Chair her extensive professional and academic expertise will be invaluable in providing advice and guidance.
"Thank you to Brett for his unwavering leadership of the Council for the past six years - I look forward to his continued contribution."
The Council - established by the National Library Act 1960 - is the National Library's governing body and is responsible for setting the overall strategic direction of the Library.
Professor Behrendt takes responsibility for an institution that is much stronger than it was three years ago thanks to secure, ongoing funding under the Albanese Labor Government for both the Library and Trove.
Professor Larissa Behrendt AO is a Euahleyai/Gamillaroi academic, lawyer, award-winning author and filmmaker. She is also a distinguished professor and laureate fellow at the University of Technology Sydney, where she established the research arm of the Jumbunna Institute, a leading Indigenous-led research centre.
Professor Behrendt has extensive experience in Indigenous law, policy, creative arts, education and research. She is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia and of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, and a Foundation Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law. Professor Behrendt was awarded an Order of Australia in 2020 for her work in Indigenous education, the law and the arts, and received the Human Rights Medal in 2021 from the Australian Human Rights Commission. She was also awarded the 2009 NAIDOC Person of the Year and 2011 New South Wales Australian of the Year.
The Hon Dr Brett Mason has served as Chair of the National Library Council since August 2018. He has extensive experience in law, government, diplomacy and tertiary education. He is an adjunct professor at the School of Justice at the Queensland University of Technology, a member of the Griffith University Council and was previously a member of the Council of the Australian National University. Dr Mason was a Senator for Queensland from 1999-2015, serving in the Howard and Abbott ministries. From 2015-2018 he served as Australia's Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Permanent Representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.
