Edward de Bono, the local academic and physician who rose to prominence for his thinking methods, died on Wednesday, less than a month after celebrating his 88th birthday.

Dr de Bono, whose career saw him hold faculty appointments at world-renowned universities such as Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard, was regarded as an authority on creative thinking with an emphasis on how the mind organises information.

His work behind lateral thinking, a term he originated, now forms part of the Oxford English Dictionary.

Dr de Bono was born in 1933 and educated at St Edward’s College. He graduated as a doctor from the University of Malta before proceeding to study physiology and psychology at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar and a PhD at Cambridge University.

His success saw his 85+ books translated into 46 languages, and his Six Thinking Hats method taught across continents.