Emmanuel de Merode

Family

Because his father was on a diplomatic mission, Emmanuel was born in North Africa, at Carthage, Tunisia. He is the second son of Charles, the Prince de Merode, and of his wife, born Princess Hedwige de Ligne. His parents belong to two of Belgium's historically most ancient and influential families, the Merodes and the House of Ligne. He descends patrilineally from Count Félix de Merode, a military commander during the successful Belgian Revolution of 1830 who helped form the first Belgian legislative counsel and government. His mother's branch of the Lignes are also the heirs to a French princely family, the House of La Trémoille: His uncle is Charles-Antoine, Prince de Ligne de La Trémoïlle.

Emmanuel de Merode does not use his hereditary title in professional contexts; however, he is legally a prince in the Belgian nobility, the title having been conferred upon the family by King Albert I in 1929. His elder brother, Prince Frédéric de Merode, is married and heir to titles of his father.

Upbringing

The Prince de Merode's sons grew up outside Nairobi, Kenya and Emmanuel studied at the Banda School, followed by Downside School and Durham University in the United Kingdom. Emmanuel earned a PhD in Anthropology from University College London, having concentrated on Congolese conservation issues.

Career

Anthropologist, conservationist and pilot, Emanuel de Merode has striven to control the bushmeat trade and protect endangered wildlife in Central and Eastern Africa. His main focus has been support for African wildlife rangers in remote and difficult national parks and reserves. His work was primarily in the parks of eastern DRC, working to sustain the national parks through the DRC's 10-year civil war. Merode is the author of fourteen scientific papers and co-editor of the book Virunga: The Survival of Africa's First National Park.

On 1 August 2008, he was appointed Director of Virunga National Park by the Congolese government. After swearing allegiance to the Congolese flag, he became the only foreign national to exercise judicial powers in the war torn central African nation. He now lives at the park headquarters in Rumangabo, bordering the park's mountain gorilla sector. The park's 680 rangers are under his direction and much of his work is focused on protecting the park's exceptional wildlife, including critically important populations of mountain gorillas, elephants, okapis and chimpanzees. His first breakthrough was to broker an agreement between the Congolese government and rebel leader Laurent Nkunda to spare the mountain gorilla sector of the park from the rages of the ongoing civil war and to enable government rangers to redeploy in rebel territory. Negotiating the neutral status of environmental and sustainable development imperatives among the warring factions in eastern Congo became a recurring theme in de Merode's approach to establishing Virunga National Park as a stabilizing presence in the war-affected Great Lakes Region of Africa.

Given the chronic insecurity and the succession of violent wars in eastern Congo, Merode has focused his efforts on economic development initiatives that bring greater stability to the region. In 2013 he assisted in the launching of the Virunga Alliance in an effort to drive the post-war economy of eastern Congo as an instrument for peace-building in the region. The initiative is based on 127 local institutions from the private sector, civil society and government agencies committing to the sustainable development of the parks resources, through tourism, rural electrification, sustainable fisheries and agriculture. A major program aims to generate 80 to 100,000 jobs in the post-war communities around the national park, providing young Congolese men and women viable alternatives to engaging in conflict related activities.

At his swearing in ceremony, Merode remarked, "The intensity of the conflict in and around the park makes this a daunting challenge, but it is a great privilege to be working alongside such a dedicated and courageous team of rangers. I have real confidence in our ability to secure a future for the park to ensure that it makes a positive contribution to the lives of the people of North Kivu." His role in maintaining the Park's administration during the M23 Rebellion was covered in the award-winning British documentary Virunga.

He has spoken about his work and the work of the rangers of Virunga in a TEDxWWF talk, "A story of conflict, renewal and hope". Under his leadership, the Virunga park opened to the public again in 2014.

Assassination attempt

On 15 April 2014 Emmanuel de Merode was seriously injured by unidentified gunmen during an ambush on the road between Goma and Rumangabo. He was shot several times in the chest and abdomen, but survived and was able to leave the scene of the attack with the help of local residents. Emergency surgery was performed at a local hospital in Goma. A legal enquiry into the motives and identity of the attackers was undertaken by the Congolese authorities. Media reports have cited various suspects, including those engaged in the illegal production of charcoal, people associated with SOCO International, a British oil company engaged in the exploration for oil in the national park, opponents of the park's law enforcement activities, disgruntled local residents, and those engaged in struggles to control park lands including, at the time, factions of the National Congress of the Defense of People (CNDP) and of the Congolese military.

Merode returned to Virunga National Park on the 22nd of May 2014 to resume his functions as Park Director.

Personal life

Merode married Louise Leakey in 2003, a paleontologist from Kenya. They have two daughters:

Honours and Titles

For his efforts, de Merode has received many international awards. Among others, he has received official recognition of King Philippe of Belgium, Prince Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-Este, Prince Albert of Monaco, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Princess Marie-Esméralda of Belgium.

Titles

International recognition

Publications