Griffith University began the year with the remarkable announcement that Professor Emeritus Alan Mackay-Sim was recognised as the 2017 Australian of the Year.
The biomedical scientist has been flat out from the moment Prime Minister Turnbull read his name aloud on the eve of Australia Day.
Like other wonderful Australians who have held the honour, Professor Mackay-Sim has been attending as many as three functions a week and travelling across the country advocating for science, technology, engineering and maths from the boardrooms to the classrooms.