Jesse Ausubel

Jesse Huntley Ausubel is an American environmental scientist and director of the Program for the Human Environment at The Rockefeller University. His research and initiatives focus on global biodiversity, industrial ecology, decarbonization, and dematerialization, aiming to advance understanding of human impacts on the environment.

Ausubel has played a central role in pioneering projects such as the Census of Marine Life, the Encyclopedia of Life, the Barcode of Life initiative, and the Deep Carbon Observatory. He has also contributed to foundational climate research, including organizing the first UN World Climate Conference in 1979, and has developed tools for science and education such as the Virtual U simulation model of the U.S. university system.

He has received numerous honors for his contributions, including the International Cosmos Prize, honorary doctorates from Dalhousie University and St. Andrews University, and the Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest. Ausubel’s work bridges science, policy, and environmental innovation, helping the global community understand and sustainably manage the planet’s biodiversity and resources.