Harold Mitchell Chair of Indigenous Eye Health
Melbourne School of Population Health, the University of Melbourne
Board Member, Bionic Vision Australia
Biography
Professor Taylor is a practising ophthalmologist who has been actively involved in research and teaching for over 30 years.
Professor Taylor was appointed the inaugural Harold Mitchell Chair of Indigenous Eye Health in the Melbourne School of Population Health at the University of Melbourne in 2008, prior to which he was Professor of Ophthalmology and Head of Department at the University of Melbourne, from 1990 to 2007; and Managing Director of the Centre for Eye Research Australia, an organisation he founded in 1996.
In 2001, he was made a Companion in the Order of Australia for his contribution to the prevention of river blindness, to academia through eye-disease research and education, and to eye health in indigenous communities.
Professor Taylor was on the faculty of the Wilmer Institute at The Johns Hopkins University from 1977 to 1990, with joint appointments in epidemiology and international health.
A member of the International Council of Ophthalmology, Professor Taylor was Regional Chairman for the Western Pacific for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and Vision 2020. He is currently Vice President of the IAPB, and holds the 53rd Chair of the Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis.
Over the years, Professor Taylor has chaired or served on advisory committees or boards for many high-profile organisations, including the World Health Organization, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, the River Blindness Foundation, the Fred Hollows Foundation, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the International Council of Ophthalmology and Vision 2020 Australia.
Professor Taylor has received the Paul Harris Award from Rotary International, the Melvin Jones Fellowship from Lions International, the International Blindness Prevention Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the Gold Medal from the International Organization against Trachoma.
In 2005, Professor Taylor was a finalist in the Australian of the Year Awards.