It is with deep sadness that we share the news that Prof. Dr. Brian Frederick Windley, esteemed Advisory Board Member of Geosciences and Emeritus Professor of Geology at the University of Leicester, passed away in March 2025, at the age of 89.

Prof. Dr. Windley was a pioneering geologist whose work fundamentally advanced our understanding of Earth's tectonic evolution, particularly the processes shaping continental crust from the Archean to the present. His career commenced in 1963 with the Geological Survey of Greenland, and he subsequently garnered renown for his field-based studies across diverse regions, including Greenland, the Himalayas, Central Asia, Madagascar, and the British Isles. His research encompassed accretionary and collisional orogens, ocean plate stratigraphy, and the petrology of high-pressure metamorphic rocks.

Among his numerous achievements, Prof. Dr. Windley received the Bigsby Medal (1977) and the Murchison Medal (1985) from the Geological Society of London, the Leopold von Buch Medal from the German Geological Society (2016), and the designation as an Honorary Fellow of the Geological Society of America in 2015. He authored over 320 peer-reviewed papers and nine edited volumes, with his seminal textbook, The Evolving Continents, serving as a cornerstone in geoscience education through its three editions.

As an Advisory Board Member for Geosciences, Professor Windley generously shared his expertise, guiding the journal's direction and mentoring fellow researchers. His legacy endures through his extensive publications and the countless geoscientists he inspired.

We extend our deepest condolences to Prof. Dr. Windley's family, friends, and colleagues. His loss will be felt throughout the global geoscience community.

Geosciences Editorial Office