Three of the world's leading naturalists died over the Christmas and New Year's period. Thomas Lovejoy, who popularised the term "biodiversity" and was a passionate defender of the Amazon, died on December 25. Edward O Wilson, known to many as the "modern-day Darwin", died in Burlington, Massachusetts. Richard Leakey, a world- renowned Kenyan who helped establish Africa as the birthplace of humankind, died on January 2nd.
Thousands of people have paid tribute to the three men, whose achievements range from developing theories of forest and island ecology to reform of the civil service and proposals to protect half the planet for nature. Along with grand accomplishments, which were sometimes controversial, their passing has been a chance to reflect on the small and mundane: fleeting interactions that inspired careers, kind words that propelled research projects, and generosity of spirit that has helped amplify the voices of those that practise and produce science.
The three white men helped promote a shift in the demographic of the scientific community.
The ecologist is Ricardo Rocha.
There is a whole generation of diverse ecologists and conservationists following in the footsteps of their predecessors. He says the books written by all three men had a huge impact on his career and improved the diversity of his fields. I am black and European. The three white men helped promote a shift in the demographic of the scientific community.
The legacy of Wilson, Lovejoy and Leakey were the subject of a callout by The Guardian. The impact of funding field studies of indigenous territories in Peru, as well as convincing prospective lawyers to pursue careers in human paleobiology, has been far-reaching.
After visiting Camp 41 in the Amazon, Alexander Nassikas decided to work on the climate crisis instead of pursuing a career as a doctor. Nassikas, who works for the UN secretary general's climate action team, says that he was once told that he was counting on him to make a difference.
Dr Thomas Lovejoy was in Australia in 2005 to discuss the problems with the world's oceans. The Sydney Morning Herald/Fairfax Media.
Dr. Dino J Martins, who heads the Mpala research centre near Mount Kenya, says that Leakey helped forge a path for African researchers to lead research in their own continent. He says that there is an entire group of African scientists who have risen because of Richard.
The co-chair of the world's leading elephant group agrees. The photo of Leakey burning ivory tusks in an anti-poaching campaign that was pinned to a noticeboard while he was at university inspired Okita-Ouma. They worked together at the Wildlife Service. He was a big fan of archeology and wanted to make a difference in the country.
A professor at Cornell University who founded the Women in Science group was a student of Wilson's at Harvard and shared his passion for ants. He was praised for his kindness and openness. Wilson wrote his papers and books on yellow legal tablets, which were then transcribed by his assistant Kathleen Horton, who worked with him from 1965 to 2021.
Edward O Wilson lectured on the caste system in ant colonies during a graduate class at Harvard University in 1975. Hugh Brown is pictured.
The gentleman's club conducted most of the science in the past. You had to have a certain kind of background and identity to look like that. We had to open the doors and invite more people to be involved in order to harness the power of our ability to understand the world around us. I am a tattooed kid from the south who was passionate about ants. Ed was able to see my intellect. That is not true of a lot of people.
I am thankful for their contributions to our understanding of the nature of life and the unthinking things we are doing to our home.
The marine biologist is named Elliott Norse.
The death of all three men is a turning point in the world's ecological history. In his final lecture, Wilson talked about the three environmental crises that will face humanity this century: the climate crisis, a fresh water shortage and biodiversity loss. The fate of the world's largest rainforest will be determined by the new roads, infrastructure and farms that are carving up the Amazon. The African elephants and rhinos are there for future generations thanks to Leakey, who was buried on his favourite ridge overlooking the Rift valley.
Despite rising extinctions and growing environmental destruction, Wilson, Lovejoy and Leakey remained optimistic. Lovejoy believed that our species would figure it out. The health of the planet remains an open question, thanks to all three.
Richard Leakey has a pile of elephant ivory. The Tom Stoddart Archive has images.
The phrase "biological diversity" was started by Wilson and Lovejoy around the same time as "giving up", according to marine biologist Elliott Norse. They saw larger things in the patterns of what we do. I'm thankful for their contributions to our understanding of the nature of life, including the nature of humankind, and the unthinking things we are doing to our one and only home.
There were too many responses to be included in our callout.
Tom Lovejoy was a peerless adviser because of his firm conviction that a healthy environment is the best way to provide quality of life to everyone on the planet.
The former director of the National Institute of Amazonian Research is Adalberto Luis Val. Lovejoy was elected to the Brazilian Academy of Sciences before he died.
Tom Lovejoy will never be the same.
Lovejoy was friends with Re:wild's chief conserver, Russell Mittermeier, who was a student at Harvard.
Tom made it clear to me that I needed to leave more. He showed me how to break out of the silos and find partners I didn't think to look for. He never asked for more breadth. He asked the right questions at the right time for me to discover the value of thinking differently. I tell my students that if they walk into a room and know everyone already, they aren't getting out enough.
Professor at Ohio University. Lovejoy helped start the Wilson Center's environmental change and security programme in Washington with PJ Simmons.
The foundation laid byLeakey has helped us double the elephant population in the country.
Dr Patrick Omondi was the deputy head of the Wildlife Service. African elephants were listed as one of the most vulnerable animals in the world in 1989 and an international ivory trade ban was imposed.
We all would have made faster scientific progress if tropical ecologists had asked their indigenous neighbours about the organisation and dynamics of tropical forests.
A professor of the school of biological sciences at the University of East Anglia was awarded a grant in 1999 by Wilson to study the Matsigenka indigenous forest classification. The study found that there was a lot of information in the database.
I spotted Tom Cruise while walking by the swimming pool before dinner. I thought he was shooting a movie in the Amazon. I saw Tom Lovejoy. He told me that he was bringing famous people to the Amazon to stress the importance of protecting the forest. I will never forget that casual encounter with Tom. He introduced me to Tom Cruise and some other actors as a Brazilian scientist concerned with the future of the Amazon, but Tom Cruise will never remember having met me.
Carlos Nobre is a climate scientist at the University of So Paulo.
Richard Leakey had a huge impact on so many people. My time at the Turkana Basin Institute was shaped by him and many other people. I was inspired to keep going on my current journey.
Kailie Batsche is a student at the Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution. She shifted from a career in law to paleoanthropology because of a field trip.
He told me that I would do well in graduate school, but also that there were still important questions in human evolution that needed to be answered and that the field needed people like me to continue to make progress.
Sarah Baumgarten was a PhD candidate in bioanthropology at Washington University. Baumgarten had her first journey outside the US and Leakey spoke with her about her future.
We can't stay. Everything is taken by Entropy. The steps that were taken, the path of a life, forgotten or not, remain as real and eternal as the flow of time, despite all that we have done and may yet do. I am happy and lucky that we have a common goal and that our paths have crossed as we travel onward on our journey to forever.
Adrian was a student of Wilson in the 1970s and worked with Lovejoy for 40 years. He shared a farewell letter he wrote to Lovejoy.
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