John Blakeley had a wide and varied career as a geotechnical engineer working both as a consulting engineer and as an academic.
John graduated with a Master’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Canterbury. He also completed a Master of Science in civil engineering, specialising in engineering geology, from the University of Illinois.
Returning to New Zealand, John was employed by the Ministry of Works on the Kaimai tunnel project. In 1965 he accepted a role at the University of Canterbury where he taught geotechnical engineering. In 1971 he began work with Beca Carter Hollings and Ferner. He was involved with many projects in New Zealand and in Indonesia.
In 1981, John took the role of Executive Officer of Applied Research at the University of Auckland. In 1988 he became Executive Director for the Centre of Advanced Engineering at Canterbury. After moving to Auckland in 2000, John lectured at Unitec. John served as President of IPENZ in 1997.
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This interview is held at the Alexander Turnbull Library. Contact the library for more information.
Date of Interview: 2018
