I never knew Jon well, but had the privilege of working closely with him on the Sainsbury-Wellcome Centre during a period that I was seconded to the Wellcome Trust to work on dividend-release projects. Once UCL had won the competition, an executive steering group was put together consisting of he and other colleagues at UCL, and representatives of the funding bodies, chaired by Malcolm Grant. He made many contributions to the discussions we had, and I found myself often turning to Jon and to Ray Dolan as the two leaders of two great neuroscience institutions within UCL for advice about how the two funders could help create yet another. His mixture of high scientific ambition with wise caution about what could be realistically achieved was particularly apt as we faced - and solved - some of the early problems. I am sorry that Jon will never, a few year’s hence, see the Institute he selflessly helped to shape, but for now, my thoughts are with Nilli and his family for their tragic loss.
