2023 sees the 200th anniversary of Alfred Russel Wallace's birth. He was born on 8 January, but the anniversary will be celebrated during the whole year. In fact, celebrations began in 2022, as several books and articles were published in advance of the anniversary.
Here is a list of events, books etc designed to celebrate the anniversary. If you would like us to add any additional ones then please email George Beccaloni (g.beccaloni@gmail.com). If possible, please use the Wallace200 logo (above) when you publicise your event - for details please click HERE If you are a taxonomist, please consider naming a species/genus after Wallace - especially taxa from Brazil or the 'Malay Archipelago'.
CONFERENCES/SYMPOSIA
Symposium "Memories of Alfred Russel Wallace and the Direction of Research on the Island Bioculture of Southeast Asia". Organised by the Institute of Marine & Island Cultures and the National Institute of Biological Resources, South Korea. 6 January 2023. Click HERE for details.
Conference "Alfred Russel Wallace - 1823-2023", Museum of Natural History, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. 9 January 2023. Click HERE for details.
Symposium "Alfred Russell Wallace: l’“eretico” alla corte di Charles Darwin?", Museo Civico di Zoologia, Rome, Italy. 10 February 2023 at 5pm. Click HERE
Symposium "The second father of Evolution", University of "Federico II", Departimento di Studi Umanistic, Naples, Italy. 29 March 2023. Click HERE
Conference "Doscientos años de Alfred Russel Wallace: pasado, presente y futuro de la biogeografía", El Colegio Nacional, Donceles 104, Centro Histórico, 06020, Mexico. 12 May 2023. Click HERE
Conference "Wallace 200: Celebrating the Wallacea's diversity and endemicity on land and sea", Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar, Sulawesi, Indonesia. 13-15 August 2023. Click HERE
Symposium "Lines in the Sand: 200 years of Alfred Russel Wallace OM FRS", Royal Society of South Australia and the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia. 31 August 2023. Click HERE
Conference "Celebração dos 200 Anos do Nascimento de Alfred Russel Wallace", Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil. 13-15 September 2023. Click HERE
Symposium "Commemoration of the 200th anniversary of Alfred Russel Wallace", University of Barcelona, Spain. 10 October, 10am - 1pm. Click HERE
TALKS
“200 years on: Alfred Russel Wallace and the discovery of the theory of evolution by natural selection”. A talk by Andrew Berry at Sabanci University, Turkey. 4 January 2023.
"Alfred Russel Wallace and his natural history exploration of the Malay Archipelago". A talk by Ah Tshen in Mandarin in Kuala Lumpor, Malaysia. 8 January 2023, 3-4.30pm local time. Click HERE
"Scientific Legacy of Alfred Russel Wallace". A talk by E. Kunhikrishnan, organised by the Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology at SKMJ School, Kalpetta, India. 8 January 2023, 10am local time. Click HERE.
"Alfred Russel Wallace’s 'Palms of the Amazon'". Online talk by Sandy Knapp, for the Linnean Lens series at the Linnean Society, London. 10 January 2023, 2-3 pm GMT. See a video of it HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace: Spiritism Meets Evolution", a talk by Charles Smith at Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA. 20 January 2023. 3:30-5:00 pm local time.
"Between Wallace’s Lines: Travels, Thoughts, and Annotations of a Self-Made Victorian Naturalist and Philosopher", a talk by Jeb Bevers for Yavapai College Library's Special Lectures & Event series. 23 February 2023. See video HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace and the Origin of “On the Origin of Species”, a talk by Joe Laredo at St Mary and St Giles Parish Hall, Church Street, Stony Stratford MK11 1BD. 24 January 2023 at 7pm. Click HERE
"The Heroes and the Hidden: searching the truth of who really collected for natural history museums", a talk by Jack Ashby of the Cambridge Museum of Zoology. 8 February 2023 at 7pm GMT. Click HERE.
"The Search For Wallace's Spider", a talk by Rale Hale, arranged by Usk Civic Society, Usk, Wales. 8 February 2023.
"Radical by Nature: Celebrating Alfred Russel Wallace at 200", a talk by Jim Costa at Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, Germany. 10 February 2023, start 19:30h (doors open 19:00h). Click HERE
"Coincidence? Charles Darwin, Alfred Russel Wallace, and What Their Discovery of the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection Can Tell Us about How Science Works", a talk for Darwin Day, by Andrew Berry at Phillips Brooks House, 1 Harvard Yard, Cambridge, MA, USA. 12 February 2023 at 6.30 pm. See HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace: Natural Selection and after", a talk by Ted Benton at Ealing Green Church, Ealing, London, hosted by the Ealing branch of the Historical Association. 14 February 2023, start at 7.30pm.
"“Alfred Russel Wallace – The Hero’s Journey in Southeast Asia”, a talk by Paul Sochaczewski, given to the Royal Geographical Society of Hong Kong. 22 February 2023. See video HERE
"Wallace's Remarkable Discoveries in the 'Malay Archipelago'". Online talk by George Beccaloni for the Linnean Lens series at the Linnean Society, London. 14 March 2023, 2-3pm GMT. See a video of it on YouTube HERE
"Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace", a talk by James Costa for Science Cafe, Raleigh, NC, USA. 16 March 2023 at 11:00 pm (Greenwich Mean Time). See a video of it HERE
"Between Wallace’s Lines: a Self-Made Victorian Naturalist and Philosopher", a talk by Jeb Bevers at the Natural History Institute, AZ, USA. 23 March 2023 at 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM MST. See a video of it HERE
"Wallace, Darwin, and the Discovery of Evolution by Natural Selection". Online talk by George Beccaloni for Wonderfest, in association with the Alameda Free Library and the San Francisco Public Library, USA. 26 March 2023, start at 1:00pm PDT time. A video of the talk can be seen HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace, co-founder of natural selection", a talk in English by Oscar Flores-Villela at Sapienza University of Rome (Sapienza Università di Roma), Italy. 28 March 2023 at 11am.
"From Evolution to 'Wallace’s Line' to Biogeography", an 'in-person' talk by Jason Ali at the Royal Geographical Society - Hong Kong. 29 March 2023 at 6.30 pm local time. Click HERE
"The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace", an in-person talk by Jim Costa at Berkeley University, California, USA. 6 April 2023 at 12:30 - 1:30 pm local time.
"Following Alfred Russel Wallace to Indonesia in search of Birds of Paradise", a talk by Meena Haribal for the Cayuga Bird Club. 10 April 2023. A video can be seen HERE
“Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace.” Online talk by Jim Costa hosted by Rotary Nature Center Friends. 14 April 2023 at 7:00pm – 8:00 pm PDT. See a video of it HERE
"Between Wallace’s Lines: Thoughts, Science, and Conservation from a Self-Made Victorian Naturalist and Scientist.", by Jeb Bevers at the Arizona Museum of Natural History in Mesa, Arizona. 15 April 2023. Click HERE
"Wallacea or Just Kicking Around in Indonesia", by Gary Friedrichsen for the Redwood Region Audubon Society, USA. 19 April 2023 at 7:00 pm. Click HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace et l’Archipel malais", by Laurence Talairach and Christophe Thebaud at Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Angers, France. 20 April 2023 at 6.30 - 8.00 pm. Click HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace, His Discovery of Evolution By Natural Selection, and the House He Built In Grays", by George Beccaloni for the Thurrock Local History Society, St John's Church Hall, Victoria Avenue, Grays, Essex RM16 2RP, UK. Visitors welcome. 21 April 2023 at 8.15 pm.
"Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace", a talk by James Costa for Dahlonega Science Cafe, Dahlonega, GA, USA. 8 May 2023 at 6:30 - 8pm EDT. Click HERE
"Nèctar, color i sexe: les papallones segons Wallace" [Nectar, color and sex: butterflies according to Wallace], a talk by Ximo Baixeras at the Botanical Garden, University of Valencia, Spain. 13 May 2023 at 10.30 - 11.15 am. Click HERE
"An Evening with Alfred Russel Wallace". In-person talk by Jim Costa, followed by a meal. Oak Spring Garden Library, Upperville, VA, USA. 1 June 2023, 5-9 pm EDT. Click HERE
"Radical by Nature". A 'virtual' talk by Jim Costa for Brazos Bookstore, Houston, Texas. 9 June 2023, 6.30 pm. Click HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace’s The Malay Archipelago and the Manufacture of Race Science". A talk by Nazry Bahrawi at the University of Brighton, UK. 29 June 2023. Click HERE
"Radical by Nature". An 'in person' talk by Jim Costa for the Nature Reader series at the Linnean Society of London. 30 June 2023, 18.00 GMT. Click HERE
"Between Wallace’s Lines: Annotations from a Personal Library", a free online talk by Jeb Bevers, for the Linnean Lens series at the Linnean Society, London. 4 July 2023, 14.00 GMT. See video of it HERE
"Radical by Nature: celebrating Alfred Russel Wallace at 200", a talk by Jim Costa at Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, Bath, UK. 6 July 2023, 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm BST. See video HERE
“Radical by Nature", a talk by Jim Costa at North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville. 21 July 2023, 6 pm. Click HERE
"Searching for Ali, Alfred Russel Wallace's Faithful Companion", a Zoom talk by Paul Spencer Sochaczewski at Sam Ratulangi University, Manado, Sulawesi, Indonesia. 7 August 2023. Click HERE
"The Mysterious Journey of Alfred Russel Wallace", a talk by Kirk Newport at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, Texas. 3 September 2023. 11 am. Click HERE
"Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace", a talk by James Costa at Boulder Bookstore, Boulder, Colorado, USA. 6 September 2023. 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm MDT. Click HERE and HERE
"In Darwin's Shadow", a talk by George Beccaloni at the British Science Festival, Exeter, UK. 7 September 2023, 3.30 pm - 4.30 pm. Click HERE
"Radical by Nature", a talk by Jim Costa for the Usk Civic Society, Usk, Wales. 10 November 2023, 7.30 pm - . Click HERE
"Twelve Wallace Myths", an online talk by Charles Smith for the Scientific & Medical Network, UK. 25 November 2023, 5 - 6.30 pm (GMT). Click HERE
FILMS & VIDEOS
A 3 part TV series about Wallace's life and work, provisionally titled "The Great Journey", is being made by production companies in South Korea and Brazil. It will be released in the second half of 2023 and there will probably be English, Korean and Portuguese versions.
"Le scoperte di Alfred Russel Wallace" ["The discoveries of Alfred Russel Wallace"] a video in Italian, with a 39 minute interview in English with Wallace scholar, Dr George Beccaloni, beginning at 32.52. George discusses why Wallace is of such great importance to evolutionary biology and why he ended up working on Wallace's life and work full time. Click HERE
PODCASTS
"The remarkable life and legacy of naturalist and explorer Alfred Russel Wallace", by English Heritage. Published 5 January 2023. Click HERE
"Alfred Russel Wallace and night science by candlelight", with Andrew Berry. Published 1 April 2023. Click HERE
"Radical and Revolutionary: Alfred Russel Wallace: A Dialogue with James Costa", an interview of Jim Costa by Xavier Bonilla. Published June 2023. Click HERE
"Radical By Nature: The Life of Alfred Russel Wallace", an interview of Jim Costa by Mitch Jeserich, for KPFA.org, Berkeley, California. Click HERE
"An Evolutionary Revolutionary: Alfred Russel Wallace and the discovery of natural selection", and interview of Jim Costa by Sally Le Page, for the Genetics Society. September 2023. Click HERE
BOOKS
Children's book about Wallace entitled The Incredible Adventures of Alfred Russel Wallace in Eastern Indonesia. Published in both English and Bahasa Indonesia versions in September 2022 by SeaTrek Sailing Adventures, Bali. Click HERE
First French edition of Wallace's book The Malay Archipelago. Published November, 2022 by Plume de Carotte. Click HERE and HERE
First biography of Wallace in Norwegian, Barbeint I Amazonas: Historien om Alfred Russel Wallace by Markus Lindholm. Published November 2022. Click HERE
A facsimile of Wallace's own annotated copy of the 10th edition of The Malay Archipelago, with a foreword by Sandra Knapp. Published January 2023 by the Natural History Museum, London. Click HERE
Booklet entitled The Quest for the Legendary House of Alfred Russel Wallace in Ternate, by Nicholas Hughes & Rinto Taib. Published in both English & Bahasa Indonesia editions in 2022, by the City of Ternate and the Wallace Memorial Fund. A pdf of the English version can be downloaded HERE
The most comprehensive biography of Wallace written to date, Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace by James Costa, published March 2023 by Princeton University Press. Click HERE
Catalogue of the Correspondence of Alfred Russel Wallace - the first catalogue of all the known surviving letters to and from Wallace. Edited by George Beccaloni and published March 2023. Click HERE to see it.
A kid's book in Welsh: Karadog, A. & Smith, A. (2023). Wallace: Bywyd Chwilfrydig Alfred Russel Wallace. Llyfrau Broga Books. 32 pp.
A wonderfully illustrated 'book' about Wallace's travels, entitled In viaggio con Wallace: Carnet de voyage a leporello, by Angela Maria Russo has been published in Italian. click HERE
A book of interesting quotes from Wallace's writings, compiled by Richard Milner, and illustrated with magnificent photos by Tim Laman and others, will be published by Princeton University Press in 2023.
A book about Wallace's legendary assistant Ali by Paul Sochaczewski, published June 2023: "Look Here, Sir, What a Curious Bird": Searching for Ali, Alfred Russel Wallace's Faithful Companion. Click HERE
SCHOLARLY ARTICLES
Ali, J. R. & Heaney, L. R. 2022. Alfred R. Wallace's enduring influence on biogeographical studies of the Indo-Australian archipelago. Journal of Biogeography, 50: 32-40. [https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14470]
Anon. 2023. Remembering Wallace. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 7(1). [https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-022-01972-z] Click HERE
Beccaloni, G. W. 2022. The 'Letter from Ternate': what happened to Wallace's legendary 1858 letter and Darwin's reply to it? The Linnean, 38(3): 16-24. [Download a pdf of it HERE]
Berry, A. 2023. Alfred Russel Wallace’s first expedition ended in flames. Nature, 613: 22-24. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-04507-5]
Costa, J. & Beccaloni, G. 2023. Alfred Russel Wallace's unrealized last book: insights from the plan for Darwin and Wallace. Notes and Records: the Royal Society journal of the history of science. [See it HERE]
Hortel, J., Diniz-Filho, J. A. F., Low, M. E. Y., Stigall, A. L. & Yeo, D. C. J. 2023. Alfred Russel Wallace’s legacy: an interdisciplinary conception of evolution in space and time. npj biodivers, 2(3). [https://doi.org/10.1038/s44185-023-00010-w] Click HERE
Ribbas, C. C. 2023. Escaping Darwin’s shadow: how Alfred Russel Wallace inspires Indigenous researchers. Nature, 613: 24-26. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-04508-4]
POPULAR ARTICLES (PRINTED)
Beccaloni G. 2023. Alfred Russel Wallace and the Malay Archipelago. EVOLVE Magazine, 51: 38-43. See HERE
ELECTRONIC ARTICLES
Muñoz-Chápuli Oriol, R. 2023. Alfred Russel Wallace: un naturalista injustamente olvidado. The Conversation. See HERE
EXHIBITIONS
Plantasia Tropical Zoo, Swansea, Wales will be relaunching their exhibition "Wallace: the Forgotten Evolutionist" (produced in partnership with the National Museum of Wales) in January 2023. For information about the exhibition click HERE Also see THIS video.
Exhibition about Wallace running throughout 2023 at the Museum of Natural History of the University of Pisa, Italy. Click HERE
Temporary exhibition at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, UK. 31 March - 23 May 2023. Click HERE
Temporary exhibition about Wallace in the Linnean Society of London's library, beginning in June 2023. It will run until the end of 2023 and all are welcome to attend (and there is no entry fee). The Library is open 10am-5pm, Tuesday-Friday. Just ring the front door bell and ask the staff at reception to direct you.
Exhibition entitled "Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913). Biogeography and Evolution" at the National Museum of Natural Sciences (Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales de España), Madrid, Spain from 3 November 2023 - 1 September 2024. Click HERE
Temporary exhibition about Wallace at the CRAI Biology Library, University of Barcelona, Spain, in October 2023. Click HERE
OTHER EVENTS
Tree planting in Usk, Wales in September 2022 to mark the bicentenary. Click HERE
Alfred Russel Wallace Bicentenary in Usk, Wales on 8 January 2023. Usk Civic Society and Usk Rotary Club, together with the Linnean Society have organised a day of special events in celebration of Wallace’s birth. Please see the list below. For further details please see Usk Town Facebook, the Civic Society website uskcivicsociety.org.uk or the new notice board outside the Co-op.
- 11.30 am. Unveiling of the Alfred Russel Wallace interpretation board in Twyn Square. This plinth will stand next to the bust.
- 12 noon Walk with Wallace Trail (guided) which takes in places that he mentions in his book My Life. There will be a Wallace exhibition at Llanbadoc Church during the day.
- 1.00 pm Buffet lunch for guests at the Sessions House.
- 2.00 pm. Tree planting at the Wallace Arboretum. The chosen tree is a Sorbus anglica, an evolving form of White Beam. Appropriate for Wallace the evolutionist!
- 3. 00 pm "You Should Ask Wallace". A one act play starring Ioan Hefin. Theatr na nOg will put on two performances, afternoon and early evening in the Courtroom of the Sessions House.
- 4.00 pm Tea and biscuits
- 4.30 pm Wallace the Botanist. A talk by Dr Sandy Knapp FLS, FRS (Linnean Society) in the Sessions House.
- 6.30 pm Pre-performance drinks
- 7.00 pm Evening performance of "You Should Ask Wallace".
For more information about the play "You Should Ask Wallace" click HERE and HERE. The production will be performed twice on January 8th 2023, in the Victorian Courtroom at the Usk Sessions House, at 3pm and 7pm.
"Alfred Russel Wallace is 200!". A free event at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, USA on April 22 2023 at 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm local time. See HERE
The events 1-4pm in the public galleries:
A show & tell table with Wallace related materials, staffed by knowledgeable students keen to share the Wallace story
A couple of short flash-mob-y theatrical events (~10 mins. The same piece repeated an hour apart) in the Hall of Mammals.
A opportunity to meet Mr Wallace in person
Evening Programme:
12-15 min talks (Geology Lecture Hall):
Jim Costa: Getting there: What Wallace's field notebooks reveal about his evolutionary thinking
Gonzalo Giribet: Then & now: Wallace's biogeography and continental drift
Janet Browne: Respect! Darwin & Wallace
Wendy Valencia: With Wallace: in the field in the Amazon
Andrew Berry: Famous for not being famous: Wallace & posterity
"Celebrating Alfred Russel Wallace: a family-friendly nature walk" in Neath, Wales on 3 June 2023. Click HERE
Wallace-related tour of the Zoological Museum Naples, Italy. 21 May 2023. Click HERE
SPECIES NAMED AFTER WALLACE IN THE BICENTENARY YEAR OF HIS BIRTH
Nama wallacei, a weevil beetle from South Africa. Click HERE
A tetrigid grasshopper from Cuba named Choriphyllum wallaceum Skejo, Kasalo & Yong - Wallace’s Cuban Dancing Leaf. Click HERE
Ampsalis wallacei, a wasp-mimicking soldier fly from Australia. See Winterton, Shaun L. (2023): Wasp-mimicking soldier flies of the Australian Region: revision of Ampsalis Walker, Elissoma White and Lagenosoma Brauer (Stratiomyidae: Clitellariinae). Zootaxa, 5246(1): 1-63
Wallacealucanus Yi, a genus of stag beetles (Lucanidae), containing 14 species all from Sulawesi. It is named after Wallacea and Wallace.