The trustees of the Eye Foundation, Inc. and the Eye Foundation Hospital constitute an independent institution, which is associated with the University of Alabama at Birmingham only in research and resident training. Clarence Blair is the Chairman of the Foundation Board. Harold Skalka, M.D., F.A.C.S., is the Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology, and his offices are in the Eye Foundation Hospital building. With funds raised largely by Alston Callahan, M.D., F.A.C.S., Director of Development, and with the assistance of fellow trustees, the retina research department has been greatly expanded in the last few years. In this article, the seven prestigious retinal investigators are introduced and short summaries of their research aims are presented. All work toward a better understanding of clinical problems which baffle ophthalmologists, as macular degeneration and diabetic eye disease.