Dame Dr Bridget Ogilvie is an Australian and British scientist. She was past Director of the Wellcome Trust and during her tenure, it established the Sanger Institute which had a key role in the initial sequencing of the human genome and greatly increased its involvement in public engagement with science.
Her own research activities and those of the Wellcome Trust were much involved in global health issues and she was the first Chair of the Medicines for Malaria Venture Board.
Amongst other activities, she was a Board member of Lloyds TSB bank, AstraZeneca plc, the Science Museum, Cancer Research UK, the UK Council of Science and Technology and is the founding Vice Chair of Sense about Science, the UK charity which most effectively helps scientists to engage with public concerns.
She was also chair of COPUS, the former committee on the public understanding of science and Techniquest.
Since her retirement, Dame Bridget has continued to play a significant role in public engagement with science and science in education. In the 1996 New Year’s Honours List, Bridget was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) and in 2003 became a Fellow of the Royal Society. In 2007, she was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), Australia’s highest civilian honour, for her work in the field of biomedical research.
