Tribute messages

Rest in peace, Prof Emma Johnston AO. To your family, I am deeply sorry for your loss. Prof Johnson is my inspiring role model as a female leader, and her contributions and legacy will continue to live on at the University of Melbourne.

Supreya Blyth, Asialink

Thank-you for your commitment to the higher education sector, and for your inspiring leadership. Your dedication and efforts will endure for decades and generations to come.

Dr Lydia Brown

Thank you for your dedication to the academic community at the University of Melbourne. Your leadership and effort created the environment that helped me thrive and become the person I am today. You are a remarkable leader, who deserves the utmost respect for the same. The world truly lost a gem of a person.

Aarushi

Professor Emma Johnston's legacy will forever inspire me. Profesor Johnston exemplified what it means to be a true lifelong learner - one who remains curious and is always up for an adventure into the unknown. As a student of medicine and research, I too want to embody Professor Johnston's indelible passion for science and technology, leading conversations in advocacy and making the world a better place for all. Thank you professor for your extraordinary impact in academia and for inspiring the next generation of thinkers.

Nancy Youhana

Emma - I never had the chance to meet you in person but observing as a staff member, I was impressed at how you made it your business to really get out and about at the University and connect with staff, students, alumni and industry. You always came across as warm, caring, direct and strategic and I think we only saw a fraction of what you were capable of in your short time here. I can see that on a personal and professional level you will be deeply missed by so many, and none more so than your family and friends. An incredible contribution to the world we live in is your ongoing legacy.

Jenni Austin

Professor Emma’s down-to-earth nature left a lasting impression on all of us. Beyond her achievements, she showed us through her leadership how important it is to be grounded, empathetic, and genuinely connected to others. The values she embodied and the lessons she taught will remain with us always.

Radhik Rammohan

Since my days as an undergraduate student, Emma has been an inspiration in many ways. I have memories of her MCing a Sorry Day gathering in North Court with ease & compassion, obviously influenced by her experience in the student union and her connection with what was then the Koori Student Liaison Unit. I watched her career take off in Sydney as she built her research program and then her career in leadership and governance. I was particularly inspired by her advocacy for women in STEM and her passion for the environment. Her ability to impart enthusiasm for and understanding of science while pushing for better systems to support and enable it was impressive. She was generous and kind, and was a role model for balancing science with everything else in life. I was excited when she was announced as Vice Chancellor - it was a transformative appointment, bringing a compassionate, scientific and genuinely human perspective to our complex university. I can't believe she's gone. Vale Emma

Miranda Smith

Gone too soon, Emma was a wonderful person in the community who had a passion for making positive differences. She will be missed.

Karti Singh-Freeman

I didn't know Emma, but I was so pleased and proud to have a brilliant female scientist and environmentalist as a VC at Melbourne, how encouraging to have someone so inspiring and thoughtful in that role. Echoing others, this is a great loss to the University and beyond. Sending my sincere condolences to Emma's family at this sad time.

A/Prof Cath Kaylor-Hughes

It was too short a time but it was clear you had an extraordinary vision for the university. Your loss has been and will be felt by the university community.

Rhonda

Emma Johnson started her tenure as the first female Vice Chancellor at the University of Melbourne on the same day I commenced employment in my role, so I felt a special connection with her. I was grateful for the opportunity to meet and talk with Emma at the 2025 Garma Festival and well as several other engagements focused on the University’s important work with Indigenous peoples and communities. She always expressed genuine warmth, deep interest, and thoughtful support, which left a lasting impression on me. Her extensive scholarship, research and leadership are incredibly impressive, yet her impact had yet to be fully realised, as she left this world far too soon. I extend my sincere condolences to her family and loved ones as she journeys on.

Sonya Paul

Emma led with rigour, vitality and humanity. She brought ethics, political sensibility and strategy to universities across Australia, including the University of Melbourne. Her grace, grit and humour held firm in calm seas and in storms. Emma, thank you for your generosity to all to the very end. I ache for her family’s loss. In deepest sympathy.

Prof. Pip Nicholson