Nicholas David Leimu-Brown (born 4 December 1962) is a British
botanist
Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...
and academic. Since 2010, he has been Principal of
Linacre College, Oxford
Linacre College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. The college was founded in 1962 and is named after Thomas Linacre (1460–1524), founder of the Royal College of Ph ...
International Baccalaureate
The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...
at UWC Atlantic College in Wales from 1979 to 1981. He then studied geography at the
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
(
Churchill College
Churchill College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. It has a primary focus on science, engineering and technology, but retains a strong interest in the arts ...
) between . From 1986 to 1990 he studied for a DPhil in Forest Ecology under the supervision of Timothy Charles Whitmore at the University of Oxford (Linacre College). His thesis was entitled "Dipterocarp regeneration in tropical rain forest gaps of different sizes". He has also completed a diploma in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education.
Career and research
Leimu-Brown was a lecturer at
Manchester University
The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...
from 1989 and then from 1992 to 2010 he was a lecturer in
forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...
at the
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
.
In 2010 he took office as the fourth and current Principal of Linacre College, Oxford.
During his tenure, he has championed investment in scholarships and has worked to improve access to graduate degrees, with over 50 scholarships now offered at Linacre in an average year.
Since 2014 he has been a Commonwealth Scholarship Commissioner acting as chair of awards policy committee.
Since 2015 he has been the chair of the University of Oxford buildings and estates sub-committee and serves on the planning and resource allocation committee of council. He also chairs the
Radcliffe Observatory Quarter
The Radcliffe Observatory Quarter (ROQ) is a major University of Oxford development project in Oxford, England, in the estate of the old Radcliffe Infirmary hospital.
The site, covering 10 acres (3.7 hectares) is in central north Oxford. It is ...
Leimu-Brown is married to Dr Roosa Leimu-Brown, a yoga therapist, movement educator and dance artist with a
PhD
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...