Biologist and entrepreneur Anne Wojcicki, frustrated by the healthcare industry’s focus on treatment, founded 23andMe to pioneer consumer genetic testing, building a massive DNA database to empower individuals with health information and crowdsource research for disease prevention and cures.
Immunologist Dr. Tony Fauci, who advised seven U.S. Presidents and was the longtime Director of NIAID until 2022, is a world-renowned scientist and principal architect of the life-saving PEPFAR AIDS program.
Dr. Laura Schmidt, a Professor of Health Policy at UCSF, is a leading sociologist who investigates how market forces and inequality drive chronic disease, using her research on topics like SugarScience and addiction policy to promote scientifically backed social reforms.
Dr. Pat Brown founded Impossible Foods to eliminate animal farming’s environmental impact by inventing plant-based meat, a mission he continues today, and through his work on ecosystem restoration projects like the “Carbon Ranch.”
Dr. Roberta Ness shifted her focus from pioneering women’s health research to advocating for scientific revolution, teaching and demonstrating that creative thinking can be systematically harnessed to solve global health crises, a mission highlighted in her books like Innovation Generation.
Dr. Chris Mason is a leading systems biologist who analyzes the multi-omic data of life in extreme environments, from the New York subway (PathoMap) to outer space (NASA Twins Study), to develop the genetic and computational tools needed for long-term human survival, as detailed in his book, The Next 500 Years.
Dr. Louise Greenspan is a leading public health expert who investigated the dramatic trend of earlier puberty in girls, using her landmark research on environmental chemicals and hormone changes to write the influential parent resource, The New Puberty.
Dr. Mary T. Bassett is a physician and lifelong health equity activist who directed a pioneering HIV program in Zimbabwe before serving as both New York City and New York State Health Commissioner, a leader in fighting structural racism in health policy.
Raj Patel uses his expertise as a former World Bank staffer turned activist to expose global injustices in the food system and link them to health disparities.
Sam Vaughn is a former inmate turned community leader who helped dramatically reduce the city’s gun violence by pioneering the Operation Peacemaker Fellowship, a program that provides mentorship and radical support to high-risk young men.