Benedict Rattigan is Director of the Schweitzer Institute for Environmental Ethics, a think tank that is affiliated with Peterhouse, University of Cambridge; his fields of research include ethics, symmetry, and the relationship between order and chaos. 

Described as a 'Western mystic philosopher' by Professor Joel Wilcox, Rattigan's theory of dynamic symmetry has been pronounced by the Oxford University scientist Professor Denis Noble CBE as ‘one of the most deep theoretical insights you could have about the nature of the Universe… It couldn't be more profound. This simple insight is the sort of breakthrough we academics dream of.’  

The theory generated a conference at the British Museum, The Language of Symmetry, in which ten leading Oxford University professors participated, as well as a Balliol College symposium, an academic journal dedicated to the subject, and a book which was published by Routledge in 2023. 

Benedict's partner, Gisella, is an international lawyer who is proficient in five languages. A classically-trained pianist, her legal career spans practice in her native Italy as well as on Wall Street, and more recently in the UK. Gisella is Associate Director of the Schweitzer Institute; in addition to developing the Institute's graduate study groups in Law and Politics, her expertise extends to formulating and implementing strategies to elevate animal welfare protection as a critical consideration in governmental policy-making.