Richard William Timm

Timm was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1987 for International Understanding.[4]

In response to his activities for development, Timm was honored with the citizenship from three different governments.

Among the many varieties of Nematodes he discovered, the Marine Nematode Timmia parva was named after Timm himself.[5][6]

Timm, as a Biologist, conducted exclusive surveys on Nematodes and discovered over 250 new species.[4]

Timm's scientific expeditions involved a landscape spanning from Antarctica Penguin Colonies to the Mangrove of South Asia. Many of his expeditions were confined in the area of the Sundarbans and other parts of South Asia but he covered many other parts of the world as well. His other expeditions include Africa, Europe, Antarctica and The Americas.

Among others, Timm described the following taxa:

• Timmia parva – marine nematode.[5][6]
• Two varieties of Aphelenchoides – marine nematodes with Dr. Mary Franklyn.[7]
• Imponema, Filiponema and Plutellonema – three new genera of earth nematodes with Dr. Armand Maggenti.[8]
• Two varieties of Megadontolaimus – a marine nematode genus from Cox's Bazar.[9]

Since 1952, Timm has been working in the education sector of Bangladesh. He was a recognized person for the operations of Notre Dame College, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Founded in November 1949, the college is still carrying on with its reputation and quality and is one of the best educational institutions in Bangladesh by the official ranking. He also took the responsibility of the Principal of Notre Dame College for the term 1970-71 and worked as the Director of Studies as well. He was still connected to the college though not taking part in academic activities. He is also the founder of the Science Departments in Notre Dame College and the pioneer for the club activities. He is also the founder of both Notre Dame Debating Club and Notre Dame Science Club which are the first debating club and the first science club in Bangladesh.[4]

The Textbook of College Biology is a writing of Timm that served as a textbook for East Pakistani – Bangladeshi schools for many years. This text is actually an extension of a book by A. Bhuya of Dhaka Government College but not much of the original version was preserved in the extension. A Laboratory Manual for College Biology was a predecessor for the text, though didn't have the popularity due to the comparatively higher price.

Timm could be considered the Father of NGO (Non government organizations. mainly for development) in Bangladesh. His activities served as the initiating force for the Association of Development Agencies in Bangladesh (ADAB), the Coordinator Council for Human Rights in Bangladesh (CCHRB) and South Asia Forum for Human Rights (SAFHR). He was a consultant for Caritas Bangladesh and a board member of several Caritas projects as well as the projects of other NGOs.[3]

On November 12, 1970, a great cyclone struck the coastal areas of East Pakistan and killed at least 50,000 people. Timm, assisted by the students of Notre Dame College, CORR (The Christian Organization for Relief and Rehabilitation, later Caritas) and HELP (Heartland Emergency Life-Saving Project), conducted several relief expeditions in the affected areas. The response was among the biggest of those taken by Non-government people.[11]

On other disasters, including the great flood of 1998, Notre Dame College and Caritas both participated in the relief effort both in and out of Dhaka City under the participation and influence of Timm.

Timm died in South Bend, Indiana on September 11, 2020.[12]

Timm's publications include numerous research papers and books.

• Notre Dame College, Dhaka
• List of Ramon Magsaysay Award winners

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard William Timm.

• Ramon Magsaysay Award Citation for Richard Timm
• Biography of R. W. Timm at www.rmaward.asia
• Biography of R. W. Timm at nemaplex.ucdavis.edu