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Philip Wollen | |
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Born | 1950 (age 74–75) Bangalore, India |
Nationality | Australian |
Education | Bishop Cotton Boys School, Bordertown High School, Adelaide University |
Alma mater | Adelaide University |
Known for | Australian philanthropist, Animal rights activist |
Spouse | Trix Wollen |
Website | Winsome Constance Kindness Trust |
Philip Wollen [1] OAM (born 1950) is an Australian philanthropist, environmentalist and animal rights activist. He is a former vice-president of Citibank and was also general manager at Citicorp. Wollen is a vegan [2] and funds projects that protect children, animals, the environment, the terminally ill and Aspiring youth. [3] [4] [5] At the age of 34, the Australian Business Magazine named him in the "Brightest and Best" top 40 headhunted executives in Australia. [4] In 2005 he received the Medal of the Order of Australia [6] and in 2007 he won the Australian of the Year award. [6] [7] Wollen went to school at the Bishop Cotton Boys' School [8] in Bangalore. He delivered the General Thimayya Memorial Lecture at Bangalore, India in 2008. [9] He lives with his wife Trix in Melbourne, Victoria.
Wollen's main project, Winsome Constance Kindness, is a global initiative whose mission statement is "to promote kindness towards all other living beings and enshrine it as a recognisable trait in the Australian character and culture." [10] The initiative emphasises ethics, [11] compassion [12] and co-operation with governments and communities, [13] and opposes cruelty to humans and non-human animals alike. In 2024 it had supported 500 initiatives in 54 countries. [14]
Wollen awards the annual Kindness Gold Medal and cash prize to people who have devoted their lives to the service of others. [15] [16]
"Kindness House," an "incubator" for growing NGOs, provides free use of heavily-subsidized serviced office facilities to activist groups. It is located in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy. [17]
Year | Award | Refs. |
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2005 | The Queen's Birthday 2005 Honours List | [18] |
2007 | National Australia Day Council's Australian of the Year (Victoria) | [19] [20] |
2013 | Honorary Fellow of the Oxford Centre of Animal Ethics, UK | [21] |
2014 | Old Cottonian of Eminence Award | [22] |
2017 | Albert Schweitzer Award | [23] |
2018 | Peter Singer Prize | [24] |
2021 | Shining World Hero and Compassion Award | [25] |
2022 | Homo Ahimsa Award | [26] |