Edward Osborne Wilson

Edward Osborne Wilson grew up in Alabama and developed a fascination with nature after a childhood fishing accident impaired his stereoscopic vision, leading him to focus on small insects. Earning his doctorate from Harvard University, he spent four decades on Harvard's faculty, discovering hundreds of ant species and pioneering the chemical communication and social structures of insect societies.

With Robert MacArthur, Wilson formulated the equilibrium theory of island biogeography (1967), which became the foundation of modern conservation ecology. In 1975, his landmark book Sociobiology: The New Synthesis applied evolutionary theory to animal and human behavior. Wilson coined the term "biophilia"—humanity's innate affinity for the natural world—and championed the "Half-Earth" project to set aside half of Earth's surface to halt mass species extinction.