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 Louise Leakey, following in the footsteps of her mother, Meave Leakey and grandmother, Mary Leakey, is the third generation of Leakey women to become a paleontologist in the Turkana Basin. Born in Kenya in 1972, Louise was exposed to the world of fossil hunting and field expeditions at an early age. These early experiences combined with her enterprising nature, helped spark her own passion for paleontology.
Louise Leakey received a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology and Biology from the University of Bristol. She then completed a PhD program in Paleontology at the University of London, where her dissertation focused on the influence of climate on faunal evolution at West Turkana between 3.3 and 1.6 million years ago. Like her parents, Richard and Meave Leakey, and her grandparents, the pre-eminent Louis and Mary Leakey, Louise focuses her study on the evolution of early human ancestors.
Today, Louise leads annual expeditions to the Turkana Basin along with her mother, Meave. Their most famous expedition resulted in the 1999 discovery of a 3.5 million-year-old skull and partial jaw that is believed to belong to a new branch of early hominids, named Kenyanthropus platyops. She currently holds the position of head of the Koobi Fora Research Project and is involved in constructing a year-round research station at the location. This station would help to further long-term data collection and the study of new specimens. She and her team hope to produce dramatic new finds in the coming years. Her work in the area has generated an increased awareness of and concern for the surrounding peoples and is helping to raise money for the local school and medical center.
Resources:
http://www.leakeyfoundation.org/foundation/f1_7.jsp
http://www.leakey.com/louise_leakey.htm
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