Water: A personal matter.

This paper is a summary of the Munro Oration delivered in Brisbane on 29 June 2011. It presents water as an extraordinary substance that is critical to our very existence and therefore demands of us both respect and commitment to its protection and wise management. It argues for a balanced approach to establishing water programs in which research, teaching, practical application, funding and governance all have a role to play. It outlines the value of personal contacts within the freshwater community and calls for the Australian members of that community to be active at both national and international level in promoting Australian expertise and in learning from that of other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]