Written by Otto Simonett and Nickolai Denisov

We were saddened to learn that Alex Kirby – our friend, colleague and longtime Zoï board member – had passed away in Lewes, England, at age 86. He started his long career as an ordained minister, but soon became a journalist working for the BBC, where he pioneered environmental reporting. We came to know him only later when he was retired from the BBC and dedicated himself to training journalists in environmental reporting. Accompanying him to the backwaters of Central Asia or the Belarus jungle, we were struck by his warmth, humility and humour. We were very happy when he accepted membership on the board of the then-new Zoï Environment Network. His calm competence was exactly what we needed.

Alex was a genuine journalist willing to ask difficult questions and to face resistance. Anyone who witnessed him training emerging environmental journalists would remember the advice that Alex gave – and always attributed to the British journalist who came up with it – “There is only one question a journalist needs to ask himself when interviewing a politician: ‘Why is this lying bastard telling me this particular lie at this particular moment?’”

We learned a lot from Alex, more than he would ever have imagined. Most importantly, he showed us how to be generous and to say thank you. During one of our meetings in Geneva, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland erupted, completely disrupting air traffic over Europe. Aware that Alex really wanted to get home to Lewes after our meeting, we managed to get one of the last available train tickets back to London. For this small thing, Alex thanked us repeatedly, and remained eternally grateful. Now it is our turn to say, “Thank you, Alex. Thank you for being part of us, and for allowing us to be part of your life.”

Just before Alex left our board after 10 years of loyal service, we asked him if he would write an editorial for the Zoï annual report. He gladly did. That piece, sparkling with the humour and wit that characterized everything Alex wrote, showed him as he was – a kind and gentle person with the heart of a warrior, utterly free in thought and deed. He called the piece “Why I Like Zoï”. We include it here in no small part because it shows why we liked Alex.