Dr. Will Hoppitt
Dr. Will Hoppitt is a lecturer in zoology at the University of Cumbria in Carlisle, UK. A large part of his work concerns developing and applying statistical methods for studying social learning in freely interacting groups of animals and in the field. In particular, Will has played a major role in developing and extending network-based diffusion analysis (NBDA). He has applied NBDA to study social learning in a range of animals including insects, birds, fish, cetaceans and primates.
Contact: william.hoppitt@cumbria.ac.uk
Dr. Maleen Thiele
Dr. Thiele is a group leader of a Minerva-Fast-Track group at the Max Plank Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig. In her research, she investigates foundational processes underlying social learning in the first years of life, and explores uniquely human learning mechanisms by comparing humans to other great ape species. Her methodological approach centers on eye-tracking technologies.
Contact: maleen_thiele@eva.mpg.de
Website
Dr. Michael Chimento
Dr. Chimento is a postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, at the University of Konstanz. He has developed automated data collection methods to uncover the mechanisms that link individual-level decision-making, social structures and processes, and the environment to culture. He studies social learning, animal culture, and cultural evolution in two urban adaptor species: the great tit and sulphur-crested cockatoo, using insights from empirical studies to inform theoretical models that are generalizable across species.
Contact: mchimento@ab.mpg.de
Website
Prof. Kathelijne Koops
Prof. Kathelijne Koops is a primatologist and biological anthropologist whose research explores the evolutionary roots of ape and human behaviour, with a focus on tool use and culture. Her work spans field sites across Africa, including Guinea, the DRC, the Republic of Congo, and Uganda. She leads the Comparative Human and Ape Technology (CHAT) Project, which examines ecological, social, and cognitive influences on tool use among African apes and humans. Holding an MSc in Biology from Utrecht University and a PhD in Biological Anthropology from Cambridge, Prof. Koops now directs the Ape Behaviour and Ecology (APE) Group at the University of Zurich, where she is a Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology.
Contact: kathelijne.koops@iea.uzh.ch
Website
Culture Conference 2026 