IGO Limited's Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Peter Bradford, has been named an Honorary Doctor of Curtin University for his distinguished services as an alumnus, through outstanding leadership, advocacy and philanthropic support of mining education.
[L-R] Independence Group Limited Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr Peter Bradford presented with his Honorary Doctorate by Curtin University Council Member Ms Sue Wilson.
Mr Bradford graduated from Curtin University’s Western Australian School of Mines (WASM) in 1978 and connects his career success in the resources industry to his studies at the University. This, combined with his passion for education, has seen him go above and beyond to create scholarship opportunities for students facing financial hardship to study at WASM and more broadly across Curtin.
Curtin University Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry AO said she was honoured to present Mr Bradford with an Honorary Doctorate of the University for his exceptional contribution to Curtin and his commitment to giving students the life-changing gift to pursue higher education.
“Mr Bradford is a true champion of education, whose philanthropic and mentoring work has helped future generations embark on a career in the resources sector and thereby ensure a sustainable and robust WA mining economy,” she said.
“He has personally established two endowment funds at Curtin – the IGO Scholarship supporting students to study at WASM and the Peter Bradford Scholarship which is open to students across all faculties. In addition, he is the Chair and founder of the successful Brighter Futures Scholarships Program, which to-date has raised $1.2 million to fund scholarships for Curtin students facing financial hardship.
“Mr Bradford also brings to Curtin more than 35 years of local and international experience in gold and base metals mining operations, exploration and development, as well as current industry knowledge and insight,” she concluded.
Mr Bradford is a mentor to students, graduates and mining professionals, and works to promote greater gender diversity in the industry as an active mentor with the Women in Mining Western Australia mentoring program.
Mr Bradford said he was overwhelmed to receive the Honorary Doctorate of Curtin University.
“It was not something that I expected or sought out, but it did cause me to reflect on my decision to get into mining and my career in the industry. I grew up wanting to be a doctor and made a sliding doors decision in the last year of high school to study metallurgy following a presentation at our school by the WA School of Mines. What a great decision, as I have enjoyed a wonderful career and have been able to live and work in many places in Australia and globally. Mining can take you anywhere,” he said.
“Having had such a wonderful career, I am passionate about advocating on behalf of, and promoting working in, the mining industry to current and future generations of students. Working closely with Curtin and the WA School of Mines, along with many other initiatives to promote the industry, mining careers and diversity in mining has been, and continues to be, very satisfying,” he concluded.
As an industry leader, Mr Bradford has been named a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) and President of the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC).
Mr Bradford was presented with his Honorary Doctorate from Curtin University at a graduation ceremony held on Friday 14 February 2020.