| Philip Wollen | |
| Birth Place: | Bangalore, India |
| Nationality: | Australian |
| Known For: | Australian philanthropist, Animal rights activist |
| Spouse: | Trix Wollen |
| Website: | Winsome Constance Kindness Trust |
Philip Wollen OAM (born 1950) is an Australian philanthropist, environmentalist and animal rights activist. He is a former vice-president of Citibank and was also general manager at Citicorp. Wollen is a vegan and funds projects that protect children, animals and the environment.[1] [2] At the age of 34, the Australian Business Magazine named him in the "Brightest and Best" top 40 headhunted executives in Australia.[1] In 2005 he received the Medal of the Order of Australia[3] and in 2007 he won the Australian of the Year (Victoria) award.[3] [4] Wollen went to school at the Bishop Cotton Boys' School in Bangalore. He delivered the General Thimayya Memorial Lecture at Bangalore, India in 2008. He lives with his wife Trix in Melbourne, Victoria.
Wollen's main project, Winsome Constance Kindness, is a global initiative whose mission statement is "to promote kindness towards all other living beings and enshrine it as a recognisable trait in the Australian character and culture."[5] The initiative emphasises ethics, compassion and co-operation, and opposes cruelty to humans and non-human animals. In 2020 it had initiatives in 40 countries.[6]
Wollen awards the annual Kindness Gold Medal and $20,000 cash prize to people who have devoted their lives in the service of others. Past recipients include Sir David Attenborough, UK; Dame Jane Goodall, UK; Smt Maneka Gandhi, India; Captain Paul Watson, USA; Dr Professor Andrew Linzey, UK; Dr Jill Robinson, China; Dr Christine Townend, Australia; Professor T. Colin Campbell, USA; Captain Peter Hammarstedt, Sweden; Sri Pradeep Nath, India; Christopher DeRose, USA; Damien Mander, Zimbabwe; Dr Chinny Krishna, India, Dr Sailesh Rao, USA; Dr Neal Barnard USA.[7]
"Kindness House," an "incubator" for growing NGOs, provides free use of heavily-subsidized serviced office facilities to activist groups. It is located in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy.[8]