Apple executive pledges $25 million to Woods Hole institution for coral reef research
Phil Schiller fell in love with the ocean at a young age, and never forgot his field trip at age 13 to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, where he got to see the famous Alvin submersible.
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The Boston native got his scuba license before his driver’s license, was obsessed with the TV show “The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau” about the famed oceanographer, and had a summer job at the New England Aquarium. He thought he would pursue a career in marine biology.
He ended up going into computers instead. That looks like a smart move now: Schiller has been at Apple for 35 years, most of it as head of global marketing, and is now an Apple Fellow, one of the few executives in the company’s history to receive that designation. However, his fascination with the ocean never faded, and his wife, Kim Gassett-Schiller, shares this passion. And now they have the means to give back.
Their philanthropic focus has turned to the Woods Hole institute that inspired Schiller as an impressionable 13-year-old. Last week, WHOI announced the couple had pledged $25 million over five years, one of WHOI’s largest-ever gifts, to establish the Schiller Center for Reef Solutions, a “virtual center” aimed at protecting and restoring coral reef ecosystems. Among other things, the donation will establish a permanent endowment to fund a senior scientist/center director, starting with WHOI reef expert Amy Apprill, along with an assistant scientist/deputy director.
“To do any small amount to support them, truly it’s an honor,” Schiller said of WHOI. “You have to pinch me. I feel so blessed to give back.”
The couple has been impressed with the coral reef research at WHOI, after getting an inside look at the institute thanks in part to president Peter de Menocal.
“We learned from this brilliant team of scientists and engineers that they’re learning how to protect the health of coral reefs, and even coming up with ways to bring them back to health,” Schiller said. “We decided to do what we can to support this.”
They primarily live in California, Apple’s home state, but also have a place in the Boston area, and return here frequently.
Schiller said he’s most excited about seeing the research they are backing evolve into real-world solutions for coral reefs that are at risk of becoming severely degraded or disappearing.
“It’s great to have papers, it’s great to have discoveries,” Schiller said. “But it’s also important to put those things into action, to make change that benefits all of us.”
This is an installment of our weekly Bold Types column about the movers and shakers on Boston’s business scene.
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