Helen Kennedy

Helen Kennedy (born 1944) is an American botanist, botanical collector, and expert of the Marantaceae family. Several taxa have been named after Kennedy, such as Amphitecna kennedyae (A.H.Gentry) and Spathiphyllum kennedyae Croat. In 2011, Kennedy received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Society of Woman Geographers.

Education Kennedy was born in Riverside, California. Kennedy has also worked for the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg and the Chicago Field Museum. As of 2007 she was an active collector for the University of British Columbia (UBC) herbarium, contributing 1,000 specimens since 1969. She has also been Honorary Curator of Vascular Plants at the UBC herbarium. As of 2016 she was herbarium research associate at the University of California at Riverside.

Awards and recognition In 2011, Kennedy received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Society of Woman Geographers. Taxa named after Kennedy include Philodendron heleniae Croat and Guzmania kennedyae L.B. Sm. & Read.

Selected publications Kennedy, Helen. "Diversification in pollination mechanisms in the Marantaceae." Monocots: systematics and evolution 2 (2000): 335-343. Kennedy, Helen. Systematics and pollination of the "closed-flowered" species of Calathea (Marantaceae). Vol. 71. Univ of California Press, 1978.