Roger Scoon was born in Bristol, England, and grew up in a rural village in north Somerset. After obtaining bachelors (1976) and masters (1976) degrees in the Department of Mineral Exploitation at University College, Cardiff, he worked for three years as a mine geologist in Zambia. A doctorate at Rhodes University, Grahamstown (1985) initiated a life-time passion for the platinum and chromite deposits of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa. Apart from a short stint as a field geologist in Namibia, Roger spent the bulk of his career as an exploration geologist in the Bushveld Complex, including as a principal and director of Platexco Incorporated, a Toronto-listed junior explorer. The successful Winnaarshoek project (Marula mine), where Roger was responsible for surface mapping, refurbishing and sampling old mine workings, running an extensive drilling program, and the bankable feasibility was purchased by Impala Platinum in 2001. Roger has published a number of scientific articles in local and international journals, mostly on the Bushveld Complex. Visits to the national parks of East Africa over many years, including trekking on the giant volcanic cones led to an interest in the East Africa Rift System. Short descriptions of geosites from localities around the world, including East Africa, published in the quarterly journal, The Geobulletin, since 2010 have led to a new interest as “The Geotraveller”. Roger has led many geological field trips, most recent of which were to the Eastern Limb of the Bushveld Complex and National Parks of northern Tanzania for the 35th International Geological Congress (2016). Roger is a Senior Researcher at Rhodes University and has acted as an external examiner for the Masters programme in Exploration Geology since 1988. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa (FGSSA), the Society of Economic Geologist (FSEG), and the GeologicalSociety of London (FGS). Other passions include skippering the family yacht, “Makoma” in the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as football, bridge, and wildlife photography. Roger is a South African citizen and lives with his wife Amelia in the largely unspoilt Garden Route of the Western Cape.
