Alastair Macdonald
Encyclopedia
Alastair Macdonald MBE (1932) is a retired land surveyor
and author
.
He took part in two Spitsbergen
expeditions while at Cambridge University.
He joined the Directorate of Colonial Surveys in 1955, serving in field parties in Kenya
, Southern Cameroons
, Uganda
, the Bahamas, Sarawak
, Nyasaland
, Bechuanaland and Zambia
. In 1969 he was seconded to the government of Malawi
.
From 1971 he served with the Ministry of Defence
before becoming Deputy Director of the Directorate of Overseas Surveys.
In 1982 he moved to the Ordnance Survey
where he was Director of Surveys and Production until his retirement in 1992.
In 2002 he spoke at the International Court of Justice
in a case concerning the maritime boundary
between Cameroon and Nigeria.
In 2009 he was awarded an MBE for services to the resolution of boundary disputes in Africa and to cartography more generally.
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
.
Achievements
Macdonald decided to become a surveyor at the age of nine.He took part in two Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. Constituting the western-most bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea...
expeditions while at Cambridge University.
He joined the Directorate of Colonial Surveys in 1955, serving in field parties in Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, Southern Cameroons
Southern Cameroons
Southern Cameroons was the southern part of the British Mandate territory of Cameroons in West Africa. Since 1961 it is part of the Republic of Cameroon, where it makes up the Northwest Province and Southwest Province...
, Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
, the Bahamas, Sarawak
Sarawak
Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...
, Nyasaland
Nyasaland
Nyasaland or the Nyasaland Protectorate, was a British protectorate located in Africa, which was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name. Since 1964, it has been known as Malawi....
, Bechuanaland and Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
. In 1969 he was seconded to the government of Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
.
From 1971 he served with the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
before becoming Deputy Director of the Directorate of Overseas Surveys.
In 1982 he moved to the Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
where he was Director of Surveys and Production until his retirement in 1992.
In 2002 he spoke at the International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
in a case concerning the maritime boundary
Maritime boundary
Maritime boundary is a conceptual means of division of the water surface of the planet into maritime areas that are defined through surrounding physical geography or by human geography. As such it usually includes areas of exclusive national rights over the mineral and biological resources,...
between Cameroon and Nigeria.
In 2009 he was awarded an MBE for services to the resolution of boundary disputes in Africa and to cartography more generally.
Publications
- Mapping The World, A History of the Directorate of Overseas Surveys 1946-1985, Alastair Macdonald, 1996, 210 pages, HMSO, NorwichNorwichNorwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
, ISBN 0-11-701590-3