News

Language is one of the prime facets of human nature and distinguishes us from other species. Nevertheless, its evolutionary origins are still largely unknown. What makes human language unique and why are we the only species that has it? Meike Zemihn is a Leakey Foundation grantee who is working to trace the origins of language.

Guest blogger Meenakshi Dubey-Pathak shares her experiences exploring the rock paintings of India.

Ron Shimelmitz is a research fellow at the Zinman Institute of Archaeology, University of Haifa. He was awarded a Leakey Foundation research grant during our summer 2016 cycle for his project entitled “New excavations at Skhul Cave, Mount Carmel, Israel.”

Every animal that lives in groups has to make decisions as a group. Even a seemingly simple decision like “where should we go for dinner?” can be complicated to negotiate.

Liza Moscovice was awarded a Leakey Foundation Research Grant during our fall 2016 cycle for her project entitled “Explaining patterns of within and between-group cooperation among LuiKotale bonobos.”

Thierry Smith is a research team leader at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels, Belgium. He was awarded a Leakey Foundation research grant during our fall 2016 cycle for his project entitled “Diversity and relationships of earliest Euprimates from Tadkeshwar Mine, India.”

Who doesn’t love orangutans? These highly intelligent, critically endangered great apes that live in the tropical forests of Sumatra and Borneo have faces with such character, such personality, they always make for great, powerful pictures.

Emma Mbua is a Kenyan paleoanthropologist who has been working at Kantis Fossil Site (KFS), a paleontological site on the outskirts of Nairobi in Kenya which has been dated to 3.5 million years old.

Piotr Fedurek is a PhD candidate from the University of Roehampton. He was awarded a Leakey Foundation Research Grant during our fall 2016 cycle for his project entitled “The effect of social integration on physiological stress levels in a small-scale society.”

In September 2016 The Leakey Foundation brought together seven world-renowned speakers and researchers for a series of short talks focusing on evolution and the challenges of building a better, safer and more survivable future.