About me

I am a Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at Durham University, UK.

and Past President of the Cultural Evolution Society.

I completed a BSc in Behavioural Science at Nottingham University in 1998, then went on to receive my PhD in Zoology from Cambridge University in 2003 (as Rachel Day). Following a career break, during which I was a visiting researcher in the Biology Department at Stanford University (USA), I began a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship in 2006. Initially I was based in the Centre for Social Learning and Cognitive Evolution at St Andrews University (Psychology Department) before moving to the Anthropology Department at Durham University, in 2007. I have remained at Durham University, becoming an Assistant Professor (Lecturer) in 2012, Associate Professor (Senior Lecturer) in 2014, Associate Professor (Reader) in 2017, and Full Professor in 2020.

I feel very privileged to have had the support of both the Royal Society and Durham University in enabling me to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

I live in beautiful Durham with Jeremy Kendal and our three kids (Alina, Efram & Sascha) and balance out my academic pursuits with wine, gin, Netflix, pilates and the odd camping trip!

[Some of my early publications are under the name Rachel Day, just to be confusing!]

I am currently running a funding competition on behalf of the Cultural Evolution Society, thanks to a very generous grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

The project is called Transforming the field of cultural evolution and its application to human futures and is particularly aimed at encouraging disciplinary and geographical diversity within the field and enhancing its interactions with policy makers and the public.

For more information see the website here. The 20 awards were announced in September 2022.