Diana Harrison Wall is the director of the School of Global Environmental Sustainability, a University Distinguished Professor of Biology, and Senior Research Scientist at the Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory at Colorado State University. A soil ecologist and environmental scientist, she is actively engaged in research on sustaining soil biodiversity and has spent more than 20 seasons in the Antarctic McMurdo Dry Valleys examining how global climate changes impact soil biodiversity, ecosystem processes and ecosystem services. In 2004, the Antarctic Wall Valley was named after Dr. Wall in honor of her extensive research in the area. 

Dr. Wall is a globally renowned speaker and expert on climate change, and has garnered publicity in recent years for her long distinguished career in Antarctic research.She is the 2013 laureate for the Tyler Prize in Environmental Achievement.Dr. Wall has received this award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the study of soil ecology and the ecosystem services that soils provide, and for her extensive efforts to convey the importance of soils for current environmental, economic and conservation concerns.