Lewis Thomas Prize

Dr. Sylvia Earle

DATE

MONDAY, MARCH 6, 2017

TIME

LOCATION

THE ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY
CASPARY AUDITORIUM
1230 YORK AVENUE AT EAST 66TH STREET
NEW YORK CITY

For more information please contact Christine Hodgson at chodgson@rockefeller.edu or 212-327-8966

ABOUT THE 2017 PRIZE RECIPIENT

Dr. Sylvia Earle is a legendary oceanographer and explorer whose myriad achievements span the breadth of science, technology, and conservation. Deemed “Ambassador for the Ocean,” Dr. Earle is internationally renowned as a speaker, author, and global advocate for marine conservation. In her book The World Is Blue: How Our Fate and the Ocean’s Are One, she eloquently reveals how just 50 years of swift and dangerous oceanic change threatens the very existence of life on Earth.

Since the 1960s, Dr. Earle has led more than 100 ocean expeditions around the world and pioneered the development of deep-ocean technology. Her field and laboratory studies have resulted in baseline exploration of coral reefs and deep-sea ecosystems of islands, in the northwestern Indian Ocean, the Bahamas, the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, Baja California, California’s Channel Islands, and the Hawaiian Islands. The results include the discovery of numerous new plant and animal species and the definition of new deep-water ecosystems.

Committed to restoring the “blue heart of the planet,” she established the Sylvia Earle Alliance. This non-profit’s “Mission Blue” initiative focuses on developing a global network of “hope spots” to safeguard areas that are critical to the health of the ocean. Dr. Earle’s underwater explorations and her campaign to save the world’s oceans were profiled in the Emmy Award-winning 2014 Netflix documentary Mission Blue.

Dr. Earle has lectured in more than 90 countries and is the author of 13 books and 200 publications. Formerly Chief Scientist of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, Dr. Earle is currently a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence. She has been the recipient of numerous honors, including 29 honorary degrees, the prestigious Patrons Medal of the Royal Geographical Society, and the Hubbard Medal, the highest honor of the National Geographic Society.

ABOUT THE LEWIS THOMAS PRIZE

Throughout history, scientists and writers have sought to communicate with one another, despite barriers of language and process. The Rockefeller University Lewis Thomas Prize for Writing about Science honors the rare individual who bridges both worlds—whose voice and vision can tell us about science’s aesthetic and philosophical dimensions, providing not merely new information but cause for reflection, even revelation. The Lewis Thomas Prize was established in 1993 by the trustees of The Rockefeller University and presented to Lewis Thomas, its first recipient, that year.

ABOUT THE ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY

The Rockefeller University is the world’s leading biomedical research university and is dedicated to conducting innovative, high-quality research to improve the understanding of life for the benefit of humanity. Our 81 laboratories conduct research in neuroscience, immunology, biochemistry, genomics and many other areas, and a community of over 2,000 faculty, students, postdocs, technicians, clinicians and administrative personnel work on our 14-acre Manhattan campus. The University’s unique approach to science has led to some of the world’s most revolutionary and transformative contributions to biology and medicine. During Rockefeller’s 116-year history, 24 of our scientists have won Nobel Prizes, 22 have won Albert Lasker Medical Research Awards and 20 have garnered the National Medal of Science, the highest science award given by the United States.