KEY CONTRIBUTORS Peter Fensham—head, heart and hands (on) in the service of science education and social equity and justice Richard Gunstone Received: 15 October 2008 / Accepted: 16 October 2008 / Published online: 22 November 2008 Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2008 Abstract When Peter Fensham was appointed to the new Chair of Science Education at Monash University in 1967 he was the first Professor of Science Education in Australia, and, we think, may well have been the first such professor anywhere in the world outside USA. Over the subsequent 40? years he has made/still makes remarkable and diverse contributions to science education research and practice, both within Australia and inter- nationally (in, it seems, every ‘corner’ of the globe). As founder of ASERA and of science education research in Australia, Peter is clearly the most obvious and central Key Figure to include in this special issue of CSSE about the Australasian Science Education Research Association. Peter provides a role model for our actions as academics: a fountain of ideas, gen- erous with support, never negative, always enthusiastic. He must have had his down moments, but I do not recall him ever appearing despondent. Despite having a less sunny nature than him, I tried to live up to his example, and was the better person for it… [Central to Peter as a science educator is] the importance of his personality—his generosity, friendliness, collegiality, etc. (Dick White) Peter is the most revered figure in Australian science education. There are several reasons for this: his intellectual depth and breath, his vibrant, friendly and infectious A post-script: This year, 2008, marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of Monash University, the second university to be established in the city of Melbourne. It is now a very large institution—over 50,000 students on eight campuses—and has international research leaders in a wide range of fields. In August, as part of the celebrations of the anniversary, Monash made 50th Anniversary Research Awards to just 15 academics, to acknowledge ‘‘the exceptional contribution they have made to their field of research and the community over the 50 years of Monash University’s existence.’’ Peter was one of the 15, and, inevitably in such exclusive company, the only awardee in Education. R. Gunstone (&) Monash University, Clayton, Australia e-mail: dick.gunstone@education.monash.edu.au 123 Cult Stud of Sci Educ (2009) 4:303–314 DOI 10.1007/s11422-008-9168-z