01
Nikola Tesla
Envisioning an electrified world
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The visionaries collection
Visionaries
101 people who saw new possibilities
Unconventional thinkers, early reformers, and pioneers who challenged familiar assumptions. Their ideas help us see how differently the future can be imagined.
02
Rachel Carson
Making ecological damage visible
Image credits
Rachel-Carson.jpg · U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service · Public domain03
Ada Lovelace
Seeing creative possibilities in computing
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Ada_Lovelace_daguerreotype_by_Antoine_Claudet_1843_-_cropped.png · Antoine Claudet · Public domain04
Mary Wollstonecraft
Arguing for women's education and rights
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Mary_Wollstonecraft_Portrait.jpg · John Opie · Public domain05
W. E. B. Du Bois
Challenging racism through scholarship
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W.E.B._Du_Bois_by_James_E._Purdy,_1907_(3x4).jpg · James E. Purdy / Adam Cuerden · Public domain06
Leonardo da Vinci
Imagining machines centuries ahead
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Francesco_Melzi_-_Portrait_of_Leonardo.png · Attributed to Francesco Melzi · Public domain07
Alan Turing
Exploring what machines could think
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Alan_turing_header.jpg · Elliott & Fry · Public domain08
Ida B. Wells
Investigating racist violence
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Mary_Garrity_-_Ida_B._Wells-Barnett_-_Google_Art_Project_-_restoration_crop.jpg · Adam Cuerden · Public domain09
Buckminster Fuller
Rethinking shelter and resources
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BuckminsterFuller1.jpg · en:User:Edgy01 (Dan Lindsay) · CC BY 3.010
Wangari Maathai
Connecting ecology and community action
Image credits
Wangari_Maathai_in_2001.jpg · Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA · CC BY-SA 2.011
Mary Astell
Arguing for women's intellectual equality
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AstellProposal.jpg · Mary Astell · Public domain12
Ibn al-Haytham
Testing explanations of sight
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Ibn_al-Haytham_crop.jpg · Adolph Boÿ, engraved by Jeremias Falck. Used as the frontispiece to Johannes Hevelius, Selenographia, 1647 · Public domain13
Simone de Beauvoir
Questioning inherited gender roles
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Simone_De_Beauvoir_(cropped).jpg · Moshe Milner · CC BY-SA 3.014
Ignaz Semmelweis
Recognizing the importance of hand hygiene
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Borsos_&_Doctor_Semmelweis_Ignác_cropped.jpg · József Borsos / Albert Doctor · Public domain15
Savitribai Phule
Expanding education for girls
Image credits
Savitribai_Phule_statue,_Maharashtra_sadan,_New_Delhi.jpg · आशीष भटनागर · CC BY-SA 3.016
John Stuart Mill
Arguing for liberty and equality
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John_Stuart_Mill_by_London_Stereoscopic_Company,_c1870.jpg · London Stereoscopic Company · Public domain17
Mary Somerville
Connecting discoveries across the sciences
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Thomas_Phillips_-_Mary_Fairfax,_Mrs_William_Somerville,_1780_-_1872._Writer_on_science_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg · Thomas Phillips · Public domain18
Sophie Germain
Pursuing mathematics despite social barriers
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Germain_-_Œuvres_philosophiques,_1896_(Illustration_page_4).jpg · s:fr:Auteur:Sophie Germain · Public domain19
Frederick Douglass
Demanding freedom and equal citizenship
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Frederick_Douglass_(circa_1879)_(cropped).jpg · George Kendall Warren · Public domain20
Jane Jacobs
Rethinking the life of cities
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Jane_Jacobs.jpg · Phil Stanziola · Public domain21
Giordano Bruno
Imagining an immense universe
Image credits
Portrait_of_Giordano_Bruno_in_"Opere"_Wellcome_L0015152_(cropped).jpg · https://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/obf_images/bc/3d/265d1be073eb34224006d0d35b02.jpg Gallery: https://wellcomeimages.org/indexplus/image/L0015152.html Wellcome Collection gallery (2018-04-01): https://wellcomecollection.org/works/qgt4dt8k CC-BY-4.0 · CC BY 4.022
Bertha von Suttner
Campaigning for international peace
Image credits
Bertha_von_Suttner_nobel.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain23
Octavia E. Butler
Imagining unfamiliar social futures
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Butler_signing.jpg · Nikolas Coukouma · CC BY-SA 2.524
Jan Amos Comenius
Advocating education for everyone
25
Christine de Pizan
Defending women's place in intellectual life
Image credits
Christine_de_pisan.jpg · The original uploader was Kelson at French Wikipedia . · Public domain26
Alfred Russel Wallace
Developing evolutionary theory
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Alfred-Russel-Wallace-c1895.jpg · London Stereoscopic and Photographic Company (active 1855-1922) · Public domain27
Emma Goldman
Challenging conventions of power
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Emma_Goldman_seated.jpg · Takuma Kajiwara · Public domain28
John Muir
Advocating wilderness conservation
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John_Muir_Watkins_Portrait_circa_1875_Edit.png · Carlton E. Watkins · Public domain29
Émilie du Châtelet
Advancing mathematical physics
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Emilie_Chatelet_portrait_by_Latour.jpg · Maurice Quentin de La Tour · Public domain30
Abraham Maslow
Exploring human potential
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Photo_of_Abraham_Harold_Maslow_by_William_Carter_(cropped).jpg · William Carter · Public domain31
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
Defending women's learning
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Sor_Juana_by_Miguel_Cabrera_(cropped).jpg · Miguel Cabrera · Public domain32
Robert Owen
Imagining cooperative communities
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Robert_Owen_by_William_Henry_Brooke.jpg · William Henry Brooke · Public domain33
Maria Montessori
Rethinking childhood education
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Maria_Montessori_(portrait).jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain34
Henry David Thoreau
Exploring conscience and simple living
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Benjamin_D._Maxham_-_Henry_David_Thoreau_-_Restored.jpg · Benjamin D. Maxham active 1848 - 1858 · Public domain35
Pandita Ramabai
Advocating women's education in India
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Pandita_Ramabai_Sarasvati_1858-1922_front-page-portrait.jpg · Ramabai Sarasvati, Pandita, 1858-1922 · Public domain36
Léon Foucault
Making Earth's rotation visible
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Foucault_portre_crop.jpg · Bertall & Cie. Fizped · Public domain37
Mary Seacole
Providing care across borders
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Mary_Jane_Seacole.jpeg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain38
Ludwig Boltzmann
Explaining matter through atoms
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Boltzmann2.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain39
Harriet Martineau
Examining society and inequality
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Harriet_Martineau_by_Richard_Evans.jpg · Richard Evans · Public domain40
Nicolaus Copernicus
Placing the Sun at the center
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Nikolaus_Kopernikus_MOT.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain41
Julian of Norwich
Writing a radical vision of divine love
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Statue_of_Dame_Julian_crop.jpg · User:Poliphilo · CC042
John Dewey
Connecting learning with experience
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John_Dewey_cph.3a51565.jpg · Underwood & Underwood · Public domain43
Alexander von Humboldt
Seeing nature as an interconnected whole
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Stieler,_Joseph_Karl_-_Alexander_von_Humboldt_-_1843.jpg · Joseph Karl Stieler · Public domain44
Ibn Rushd
Philosopher of reason and interpretation
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Andrea_di_bonaiuto,_apoteosi_di_san_tommaso_d'aquino,_11_averroè.jpg · Sailko · CC BY 3.045
Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Questioning women's economic dependence
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Charlotte_Perkins_Gilman_c._1900.jpg · Charles Fletcher Lummis / Adam Cuerden · Public domain46
Benjamin Banneker
Pursuing science while challenging slavery
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Benjamin_Banneker_woodcut,_age_64.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain47
Charles Fourier
Imagining alternative social organization
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Portrait_painting_of_Charles_Fourier_by_Jean_Gigoux_—_1835_(3x4_cropped).jpg · Jean Gigoux · CC BY-SA 4.048
Louise Michel
Challenging social hierarchy
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Louise_Michel2.jpg · J.M. Lopez · Public domain49
Charles Henry Turner
Investigating learning in insects
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Charles_Henry_Turner_at_Sumner_High_School,_St._Louis,_Mo._Aug._9,_1921.jpg · The Crisis Restored by Adam Cuerden · Public domain50
Christine Ladd-Franklin
Opening new paths in logic and psychology
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Christine_Ladd-Franklin_(1847-1930).jpg · Smithsonian Institution from United States · No restrictions51
Norbert Wiener
Exploring feedback and cybernetics
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Norbert_Wiener.png · Garry Olsh · CC052
Pauline Hopkins
Reimagining race and identity in fiction
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Pauline_Elizabeth_Hopkins_circa_1901.jpg · Colored American Magazine · Public domain53
Lillian Wald
Pioneering community nursing
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Lillian-Wald.jpg · Harris & Ewing · Public domain54
W. Edwards Deming
Rethinking quality and management
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W._Edwards_Deming.jpg · FDA · Public domain55
Margaret Hamilton
Engineering reliable software for spaceflight
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Margaret_Hamilton_1995.jpg · Daphne Weld Nichols · CC BY-SA 3.056
Ellen Swallow Richards
Connecting chemistry with public health
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Ellen_Swallow_Richards_(2).jpg · Unknown (Original uploader was Astrochemist at en.wikipedia ) · Public domain57
Thomas Paine
Arguing for republican democracy
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Laurent_Dabos_–_Thomas_Paine_–_Google_Art_Project.jpg · Laurent Dabos · Public domain58
Anna Julia Cooper
Advocating Black women's education
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A_J_Cooper.jpg · C. M. Bell · Public domain59
John Snow
Tracing cholera through evidence
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John_Snow.jpg · [1] Originally from en.wikipedia ; description page is/was here . · Public domain60
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
Imagining feminist futures
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Begum_Rokeya.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain61
Vannevar Bush
Envisioning linked stores of knowledge
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Vannevar_Bush,_1938,_Harris_&_Ewing_(cropped).jpg · Harris & Ewing · Public domain62
Hannah Arendt
Examining power and political responsibility
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Hannah_Arendt_auf_dem_1._Kulturkritikerkongress,_Barbara_Niggl_Radloff,_FM-2019-1-5-9-16_(cropped).jpg · Barbara Niggl Radloff · CC BY-SA 4.063
Robert Boyle
Advancing experimental chemistry
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The_Shannon_Portrait_of_the_Hon_Robert_Boyle.jpg · Johann Kerseboom · Public domain64
Nellie Bly
Pioneering investigative journalism
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Nellie_Bly_2.jpg · H. J. Myers, photographer · Public domain65
Lester Brown
Connecting economies and environmental limits
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Lester_Brown.jpg · Victor Soares/ABr · CC BY 3.0 br66
Audre Lorde
Writing about identity and liberation
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Audre_Lorde,_1970–1978.jpg · Eric Stephen Jacobs · Public domain67
Abigail Adams
Urging recognition of women's rights
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Abigail_Adams_by_Gilbert_Stuart.jpg · Gilbert Stuart · Public domain68
Samuel Morse
Telegraph innovator
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Samuel_Morse.jpg · Mathew Benjamin Brady · Public domain69
Viktor Frankl
Exploring the search for meaning
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Viktor_Frankl2.jpg · Prof. Dr. Franz Vesely · CC BY-SA 3.0 de70
Alice Paul
Organizing for women's suffrage
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Alice_Paul_cph.3a38295.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain71
Marshall McLuhan
Exploring how media shape society
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Marshall_McLuhan.jpg · Josephine Smith · Public domain72
Hugo Gernsback
Imagining technological futures
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Radio_News_Nov_1928_Cover.jpg · Radio News staff, unknown illustrator. · Public domain73
Amory Lovins
Reimagining efficient energy use
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Amory_Lovins,_2011_(cropped).jpg · U.S. Naval War College · CC BY 2.074
Susan B. Anthony
Organizing for women's political equality
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SB_Anthony_from_RoRaWW.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain75
Vandana Shiva
Advocating biodiversity and seed sovereignty
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Dr._Vandana_Shiva_DS.jpg · Augustus Binu / facebook · CC BY-SA 3.076
Paulo Freire
Rethinking education and empowerment
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Paulo_Freire_1977.jpg · Slobodan Dimitro · CC BY-SA 3.077
Rebecca Solnit
Connecting stories, place, and social change
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2026-03-02_Rebecca_Solnit_at_the_Internet_Archive.jpg · Gnuish · CC BY-SA 4.078
Jiddu Krishnamurti
Questioning inherited systems of thought
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Jiddu_Krishnamurti_01.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain79
bell hooks
Connecting education, feminism, and culture
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Bell_hooks,_October_2014.jpg · Alex Lozupone (Tduk) · CC BY-SA 4.080
Edward Said
Challenging representations of empire
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Edward_Said_and_Daniel_Barenboim_in_Sevilla,_2002_Crop.jpg · Barenboim-Said Akademie gGmbH · CC081
Elinor Ostrom
Rethinking how communities share resources
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Nobel_Prize_2009-Press_Conference_KVA-30.jpg · Holger Motzkau · CC BY-SA 3.082
Ivan Illich
Questioning institutions and industrial society
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1969_press_photo_of_Ivan_Illich.jpg · Associated Press · Public domain83
George Washington Williams
Documenting colonial abuses
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George_W._Williams_from_History_of_Negro_Troops.jpg · Harper & Brothers (publisher) · Public domain84
Murray Bookchin
Linking ecology and social organization
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Murray_Bookchin,_Burlington_Vermont,_1990.jpg · Debbie Bookchin · CC BY-SA 4.085
Michelangelo
Italian sculptor and painter
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Michelangelo_Daniele_da_Volterra_(dettaglio).jpg · Attributed to Daniele da Volterra · Public domain86
Patrick Geddes
Connecting cities, society, and ecology
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Patrick_Geddes_(cropped).jpg · Sir Patrick Geddes, by Lafayette (Lafayette Ltd) half-plate nitrate negative, 30 December 1931 Given by Pinewood Studios via Victoria and Albert Museum, 1989 © National Portrait Gallery, London (NPG x47992) · Public domain87
Josephine Butler
Campaigning against sexual double standards
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Josephine_Butler.jpg · George Richmond (1809-1896) · Public domain88
Amartya Sen
Rethinking development and human capability
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Amartya_Sen_20071128_cologne_cropped.jpg · Amartya_Sen_20071128_cologne.jpg : Elke Wetzig ( Elya ) derivative work: ChaudhryAzan ( talk ) · CC BY-SA 3.089
Gerda Lerner
Building the study of women's history
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UW-Madison_history_professor_Gerda_Lerner.jpg · UW-Madison · CC BY 3.090
Ernest Everett Just
Studying the biology of cell surfaces
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ErnestEverettJust1925.jpg · Unknown, but a different U Chicago post of the photo shows a caption dating the photo to 1925 https://www.uchicagomedicine.org/forefront/biological-sciences-articles/pioneering-biologist-ernest-everett-just · Public domain91
Huda Sha'arawi
Organizing Egyptian feminism
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Huda_Sha'arawi2.jpg · Anonymous Unknown author · Public domain92
Gustav Landauer
Imagining cooperative social life
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Photo_-_Portrait_-_Gustav_Landauer_(cropped).jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain93
Fannie Lou Hamer
Organizing for voting rights
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Fannie_Lou_Hamer_1964-08-22.png · Adam Cuerden · Public domain94
Zoltán Kodály
Bringing music education to wider audiences
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Kodály_Zoltán_1930s.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain95
Eglantyne Jebb
Advocating children's rights
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Eglantyne_Jebb.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · Public domain96
Hans Rosling
Challenging misconceptions with data
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Hans_Rosling,_2016_(cropped).jpg · Gapminder Foundation · CC BY 3.097
Dorothy Day
Connecting faith and social justice
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Dorothy_Day_Vivian_Cherry_Portrait_Edit.jpg · Vivian Cherry · Public domain98
Lewis Mumford
Examining technology and urban life
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Mumford,_Lewis.jpg · US Federal Government · Public domain99
Hermann Hesse
Exploring selfhood and spiritual freedom
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Hermann_Hesse_2.jpg · Unknown author Unknown author · CC BY-SA 3.0 nl100
Adrienne Rich
Reimagining poetry and social possibility
Image credits
Adrienne_Rich_(cropped).jpg · Ovaryian · CC BY-SA 4.0101
Bayard Rustin
Organizing nonviolent civil rights action
