Frank Howarth

In 1981 he joined the New South Wales public service and has held positions with the Department of Industrial Development and Decentralisation, NSW Science and Technology Council, Public Service Board, and the Roads and Traffic Authority. He was appointed director and chief executive of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney in 1996 and to his Australian Museum position in 2004.

On 24 June 1978, Howarth attended the protest that led to the Sydney Mardi Gras and was shocked when The Sydney Morning Herald published in full the names of those arrested, leading to many people being outed to their friends and places of employment. Howarth and his long-term partner, Peter, live in an inner-city, eastern suburb of Sydney having recently moved from an eastern beach-side suburb.

He was born in Sydney and educated at Newington College (1963-1969), commencing as a preparatory school student in Wyvern House. As his family lived on the lower North Shore of Sydney, on the northern side of the Parramatta River, Howarth eschewed traditional GPS sport and chose to sail instead. He gained a geology degree from Macquarie University and a Master of Science and Society from the University of New South Wales.

Frank Richard Howarth PSM (born 24 October 1951) is an Australian public servant and was the director of the Australian Museum from February 2004 to February 2014. He has been the national president and chair of the Council of Museums Galleries Australia since 2013.