OBITUARY

Dame Marie Bashir passed away on 20 January 2026.

Dame Bashir was elected to the ATSE Fellowship as Honorary Fellow in 2006. She was an active member of ATSE's New South Wales Division. She was the first female Governor of New South Wales, from 2001 to 2014.

Prior to her appointment as Governor, she worked in the fields of children's services, psychiatry, mental health and Indigenous health. She was named a Dame of the Order of Australia in 2014 for her contributions to the administration, public life and people of NSW, as well as her work in medicine, mental health and with young people, the marginalised and the disadvantaged.

She is remembered for the dignity, warmth, intellect and empathy she brought to her work and her interactions with all Australians.