Twenty Scholars and Artists Receive MacArthur Genius Grants

Twenty scholars, scientists, and artists have been named recipients of the MacArthur Foundation's annual $800,000 fellowship grants, known popularly as genius grants. This year's group includes a wide range of professionals whose work spans climate change, history, economics, art, and medicine.

Selected Fellows

Holly Jean Buck focuses on climate change policy, arguing in her 2019 book After Geoengineering that carbon removal systems must serve the public interest. Kaiyu Guan combines satellite data and machine learning to boost food productivity while reducing environmental impacts. Climate scientist Marika Holland studies polar sea ice and global climate dynamics, demonstrating how thinning ice accelerates polar warming. Historian Elizabeth Ellis explores how smaller Indigenous groups shaped early American history. Labor economist Ellora Derenoncourt studies the historical drivers of the racial wealth gap, showing how the 1966 Fair Labor Standards Act extension reduced earnings gaps. Historian Ariel Ron challenges narratives about the 19th-century North and South in his 2020 book Grassroots Leviathan. Novelist Maaza Mengiste explores the societal harms of conflict, focusing on Ethiopian women in her 2019 novel The Shadow King. Visual artist Vincent Valdez depicts working-class Chicano communities, including his El Chavez Ravine installation on a 1950s ice cream truck. Visual artist Rodney McMillian highlights systemic inequality through sculpture, painting, and video. Forensic anthropologist Kate Spradley founded Operation Identification in 2013 to repatriate migrant remains along the Texas-Mexico border. Chemical engineer Liangfang Zhang pioneers biomimetic nanomedicine using natural cell membranes to deliver drugs safely. Organic chemist Song Lin advances organic electrosynthesis, using clean electricity instead of toxic reagents. Physicist Vincenzo Vitelli models how forces move through living tissues. Sound and visual artist Christine Sun Kim uses musical notation and American Sign Language in her work. Philosopher and cognitive scientist Felipe De Brigard explores human memory and trauma recovery. Novelist Bryan Washington writes intimate fiction examining modern relationships. Poet Layli Long Soldier uses legal documents in her 2017 collection Whereas to highlight state violence. Dancer and choreographer Trajal Harrell blends diverse dance styles and cultures. Visual artist Chip Thomas draws on his 36 years as a primary care physician on the Navajo Nation. Saxophonist and composer Immanuel Wilkins incorporates live cooking sounds into his musical performances.

Context

MacArthur Fellowships provide recipients with unrestricted funds over several years to support their creative and professional pursuits. The selection process relies on an anonymous network of scouts who identify individuals showing exceptional creativity and promise. These awards celebrate unconventional thinkers across disciplines whose work offers deep insight into contemporary issues.