American doctor, researcher and public health advocate Anthony Fauci was BOTD in 1940. Born in Brooklyn, New York City, he studied medicine at Cornell University, focusing on infectious diseases and immunology. He joined the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, becoming its director in 1984. Fauci was at the forefront of efforts to contain the HIV/AIDS epidemic, contributing important scientific research on how HIV destroys the immune system and progresses into AIDS. He faced down criticism from AIDS activist group ACT-UP through the 1980s, notably from Larry Kramer, who called him an “incompetent idiot” after Fauci suggested that AIDS could be transmitted through close contact within families (an error Fauci later corrected). He was eventually acknowledged for his willingness to engage with the LGBTG community and make experimental drug treatments more accessible. Fauci was the architect of President George Bush Sr’s 2003 Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, a programme responsible for saving over 20 million lives in developing nations. In 2008, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honour. In 2020, he led the US Government’s response to swine flu and Ebola. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he was a lead member of the White House’s Coronavirus Task Force, though many of his recommendations (such as wearing masks) were openly rebutted by President Donald Trump. He went on to serve as chief medical adviser to President Biden, resigning from the role after Trump’s re-election in 2024. He currently holds a professorship at Georgetown University’s School of Medicine and Public Policy. Fauci lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife Christine Grady, with whom he has three daughters. He was profiled in the 2021 documentary Fauci, chronicling his efforts during the COVID pandemic.