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Louise Leakey

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Her Highness
Louise, Princess of Merode
Born (1972-03-21) 21 March 1972 (age 52)
Alma materUnited World College of the Atlantic
University of Bristol
University College, London
Known forYoungest documented person to find hominoid fossil
Spouse
(m. 2003)
ChildrenPrincess Seiyia de Merode
Princess Alexia de Merode
Parent(s)Richard Leakey
Meave Epps
RelativesHouse of Merode (by marriage)
Scientific career
FieldsPaleontology

Princess Louise de Merode (née Leakey, born 21 March 1972) is a Kenyan paleontologist and anthropologist. She conducts research and field work on human fossils in Eastern Africa.[1]

Early life and education

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Louise Leakey was born in Nairobi, Kenya, to Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist and politician Richard Leakey and British paleoanthropologist Meave Leakey in 1972, the same year that her paleoanthropologist grandfather, Louis Leakey, died. She first became actively involved in fossil discoveries in 1977, when at the age of five she became the youngest documented person to find a hominoid fossil.[2]

Leakey earned her International Baccalaureate from United World College of the Atlantic and a Bachelor of Science degree in geology and biology from the University of Bristol. She earned a PhD from University College, London[3] in 2001.

Career

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In 1993, Leakey joined her mother as a co-leader of paleontological expeditions in northern Kenya. The Koobi Fora research project has been the main program behind some of the most notable hominid fossil discoveries of the past two decades, the most recent being Kenyanthropus platyops.[1]

Leakey has promoted an initiative to place digital models of fossil collections in a virtual laboratory, African Fossils, where models can be downloaded, 3D printed or cut in cardboard for reassembly.[4]

Personal life

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In 2003, Leakey married Prince Emmanuel de Merode, a Belgian primatologist. She is styled princesse de Merode by marriage. The couple have two daughters:[5]

  • Princess Seiyia de Merode; born in 2004
  • Princess Alexia de Merode; born in 2006.[6]


See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Mitchell, Ryan (November 2003). "Anthropologist Louise Leakey carries 'family banner'". Archived from the original on 11 December 2003. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  2. ^ Pearson, Stephanie (2003-12). "Louise Leakey" in "XX Factor". Outside Magazine, December 2003.
  3. ^ "Bios: Louise Leakey". Retrieved 21 November 2014.
  4. ^ "Autodesk & Dr. Louise Leakey Share 3.3-Million-Year-Old Stone Tools with the World via 3D Printing | 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing". 3dprint.com. 28 May 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  5. ^ "Who tried to kill the man who protects the Congo gorillas?". The Independent. 20 April 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  6. ^ Bowman-Kruhm, Mary (2005). The Leakeys: A Biography. ISBN 0-313-32985-0
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