Frans de Waal

Frans de Waal (1948–2024) was a Dutch-born primatologist and ethologist who became a leading voice in the study of primate social behavior. Trained in biology in the Netherlands, he later worked in the United States and held a long academic career at Emory University. De Waal’s research on chimpanzees and bonobos emphasized cooperation, conflict resolution, and the evolutionary roots of empathy and morality. He brought these findings to a wide audience through influential books, including *Chimpanzee Politics* (1982) and *Our Inner Ape* (2005), arguing that human social life is deeply connected to our primate heritage.