October 3, 2025 - Interviews with a former faculty member Ian Colquhoun on the passing of Dr. Jane Goodall

Below are two interviews with a former Western Anthropology faculty member Ian Colquhoun, a biological anthropologist with a specialization in primatology, on the passing of Jane Goodall, the world-famous primatologist, conservationist and chimpanzee researcher. Our colleague personally knew Dr. Goodall and shared his memories of her.

1. CBC News Network https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.6925692
2. London Morning Show https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-158-London-morning/clip/16173053-remembering-Jane-goodall

September 5, 2025 - Andrew Nelson’s interview with Quirks and Quarks

Here you will find Department Chair Andrew Nelson’s interview with Quirks and Quarks on new methods of non-invasive scanning which allows to study Peruvian mummies without unwrapping them.

Learn more here: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-51-quirks-and-quarks/clip/16167734-technology-allows-examination-Inca-mummies-without-disturbing

June 16, 2025 - Greg Beckett's article in The Conversation on Haiti

Faculty member Greg Beckett penned a contribution to The Conversation on the current political and security situation in Haiti, stressing that there are no easy solutions.

Learn more here: https://theconversation.com/haiti-on-the-brink-gangs-fill-power-vacuum-as-current-solutions-fail-a-nation-in-crisis-257948

November 2024 - Professor Lindsay Bell awarded the CASCA Labrecque-Lee Book Prize Committee Award

Professor Lindsay Bell has been awarded the CASCA Labrecque-Lee Book Prize Committee Award for 2024 for her book  Under Pressure: Diamond Mining and Everyday Life in Northern Canada. The Labrecque-Lee Book Prize honours a single or co-authored monograph on sociocultural, archaeological, bio-cultural, ethnohistorical or linguistic work, in French or English. It is given to CASCA members who demonstrate a Canadian affiliation through either their fieldwork, institution, degree or funding. The winner is honoured at the CASCA annual meeting and receives a $500 award. In 2024, nine monographs were submitted. The Committee’s criteria are richness and deepness of ethnography, strength of theoretical work, literary style, originality, and contribution to anthropological debates.

October 2024 - Inside the quest to restore dignity to some of Ontario's forgotten

Western historian Professor Cody Groat together with a team of student researchers, has worked to bring dignity back for 400 souls whose final resting place in the back of Ingersoll Rural Cemetery was noted in a burial registry as simply being, in "Potter's Field. Read the article in the Toronto Star.

Anthropology MA student Isaac Bender was part of a parallel research team in conjuntion with a Canadian Archaeology Association working group to test non-invasive methods of identifying graves and develop best practices that could be used elsewhere to determine unmarked graves of Indigenous children at residential schools, day schools and hospitals.

July 2024 - Madagascar field course rooted in relationships, reciprocity

Western anthropology students pair with Malagasy peers, study ecotourism, climate chage.

When Andrew Walsh was a master’s student, he travelled to Madagascar for a research project. Then a budding anthropologist, he immersed himself in the African island’s culture, gaining critical insights and building lifelong friendships.

Today Walsh helps Western students do the same, through the Environmental Anthropology in Madagascar field course. Read More in Western News. 

June 2024 - Inspiring future generations of Indigenous youth through sport

PhD candidate Kalley Armstrong’s story is featured in Western’s Impact Project. Drawing on her Indigenous heritage and legacy of hockey talents, Kalley founded Armstrong Hockey in 2019 to offer hockey camps to girls of all backgrounds, with a special emphasis on Indigenous players.

The Impact Project will be sharing lessons of impact from a remarkably diverse range of individuals who are collectively contributing to change at all levels of civil society – in Canada and around the world. The Impact Project will be looking for answers to how each of us can more effectively make a difference in the world.

May 2024 - Western researchers receive Governor General’s Innovation Award: Lisa Hodgetts and Edward Eastaugh share knowledge with Indigenous communities searching for unmarked graves

Anthropology researchers Lisa Hodgetts and Ed Eastaugh are being recognized by Governor General Mary Simon for their work with the Canadian Archaeological Association Working Group on Unmarked Graves (CAAWGUG).

The network of 15 scholars from across the country offers training, guidance and support to Indigenous communities conducting searches for missing children. Created in the wake of the devastating announcement of unmarked graves near a former residential school in Kamloops in 2021, CAAWGUG shares anthropological expertise with Indigenous communities in hopes of passing on skills and strategies to aid in those complicated and emotional investigations. Read the article in Western News. 

October, 2023 - webcast with Dr. Pamela Block on sibling caregiving

This webcast The diverse and dynamic nature of sibling caregiving over time is a powerful conversation between faculty member Dr. Pamela Block and Helen Ries from Siblings Canada. They discuss the preliminary results of their study into sibling relationships and how they change over time, particularly as parents age and are no longer able to care. This study was supported by the Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence.

This study is ongoing, if you and your sibling would like to participate in the study please contact us at info@siblingscanada.ca

August, 2023 - Western students dig up history in the Caribbean

Supervised by Professor Neal Ferris, six undergraduate students and a graduate student were part of the field school, which provided foundational skills in archaeology, such as identification, excavation, and handling artifacts when they’re recovered. The group worked closely with the Nevis Historical and Conservation Society. Read the article in Western News.

August, 2023 - PhD candidate Javier Alvarez Vandeputte named Vanier Scholar 2023-24

Congratulations to Anthropology PhD candidate Javier Alvarez Vandeputte, who has been named one of four Western Vanier Scholars for 2023-24. Javier's research focuses on the linguistic revitalization strategies developed by the Mapuche Indigenous people of south-central Chile. The Vanier Canada Scholarships recognize leadership and scholarly achievement. Read the article in Western News.

July, 2023 - Professor Pamela Block & students take unique research trip to Brazil

Western students Nadine Domingo, Monica Rocha Martinez and professor Pamela Block travelled to Florianopolis, Brazil for a field research trip in May 2023.

The group went to explore disability studies and activism, teaming up with Block’s longtime research associate and friend Marivete Gesser, a psychologist and professor at the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) in Florianopolis. Read the article in Inside Western.

April, 2023 - PhD candidate Tamara Britton a finalist in SSRHC Storytellers Challenge

Anthropology PhD candidate Tamara Britton has been selected as Top 25 finalist in the 2023 SSHRC Storytellers Challenge.

Tamara's research is highlighted in the May 19 issue of Western News. Read the article.

View Tamara’s video submission, ‘People, Primates and Bamboo: Negotiating Balance through the Study of Human-Environmental Relationship in the Pacoche Wildlife Refuge, Ecuador’, here:

March, 2023 - Professor Lindsay Bell - Upcoming Book

In her upcoming book, Under Pressure: Diamond Mining and Everyday Life in Northern Canada, Anthropology Professor Lindsay Bell uses Mackenzie Place Tower as the central focus as she examines the way resource extraction has impacted demographics, economics and culture in Hay River, and the Northwest Territories more broadly. Read the story by Rob Rombouts.

March, 2023 - Roma Roth, BA’90, adapts another series by best-selling author Robyn Carr, this time setting it in Canada

When fellow producers told Roma Roth “romantic dramas never sell,” Roth ignored their advice. She chose to make a break from delivering highly rated thrillers for the tv movie market, and bypass a saturated marketplace of psychological thrillers and murder mysteries. Read the article by Keri Ferguson featured in Western News.

February, 2023 - Dr. Trish Markert joins the Dept. of Anthropology

We are delighted to introduce our newest faculty member! Dr. Trish Markert will be joining the Dept. of Anthropology as an Assistant Professor. Drawing upon historical archaeology and mixed methods such as ethnography, narrative and architectural analysis, oral history, and digital mapping, Dr. Markert studies how migrant communities create a sense of place across generations. Dr. Markert's research is focused in a recent article by Rob Rombouts. Read the article.

January, 2023 - Mingyuan Zhang - Article in American Anthropologist

PhD Alum Mingyuan Zhang (2018) has a new open-access article, "“Burn to Harvest, Burn to Sabotage: Between Fire and Water on a Sugar Plantation in Madagascar” in American Anthropologist - THE JOURNAL. Read the article.

January, 2023 - Milk consumption increased ancient human body size

A new study led by Professor Jay Stock suggests that milk consumption in some regions between 7,000 and 2,000 years ago led to an increase in human body mass and stature. This ran counter to trends in body size experienced elsewhere in the world. Read the article by Rob Rombouts - Special to Western News.

December, 2022 - Links between brain and skeletal development offer new possibilities for understanding human evolution – study by Jay Stock

New research by Professors Jay Stock and Jaap Saers (University of Cambridge) has found that brain development in humans and other primates is closely linked to skeletal development. Read the story by Rob Rombouts.

December, 2022 -Tutankhamun’s face revealed for the first time – Andrew Nelson’s research

Tutankhamun’s face has been revealed for the first time. Sculptor Christian Corbet brought the “boy king” to life using a 3D model based on scans of the pharaoh’s skull taken by Professor Andrew Nelson. Read the article by Jeff Renaud in Western News.

December, 2022 - Greg Beckett on the crisis in Haiti and the importance of a Haiti-led solution - Globe and Mail article

Professor Greg Beckett’s latest article in the Globe and Mail describes the historical context of the current crisis in Haiti and the importance of a Haiti-led solution.

November, 2022 - How accessibility for disabled students can benefit all students - an article by Kim Clark

In this article, Professor Kim Clark and a research team of undergraduate students explore how instructors' everyday practices impact students - positively and negatively - who self-identify as disabled. Professor Andrew Walsh helped to design the team's research process.

October, 2022 - Climate change and deforestation may drive tree-dwelling primates to the ground

Ian Colquhoun was part of a massive collaboration study demonstrating the importance of protected habitats for lemurs and other arboreal species. Read more.

August, 2022 - Confirming museum shrunken head as human

Lauren Poeta, MA student, co-authored a paper confirming museum shrunken head as human, helping to preserve and understand Indigenous history. Content Warning.  Article contains digital visualizations of Ancestral human remains. Read more.

July, 2022 - Supporting Mutual Care Relationships

Funding from the Canadian Centre of Caregiving Excellence will provide support for research (by co-investigator Pam Block) on primary caregivers of disabled or autistic siblings and how disability impacts mutual care relationships. Read more.

May, 2022 - Haiti Beyond Crisis - an article written by Greg Beckett & Laura Wagner

This article, in the series, suggests new ways to understand the current situation in Haiti and poses questions about what is and isn't happening in Haiti currently.

April, 2022 - Allies and Obstacles book wins Outstanding Publication in the Sociology of Disability Award 

Dr. Pam Block wins Outstanding Publication in the Sociology of Disability Award for her co-authored book Allies and Obstacles

March 8, 2022 - Alum at helm of Trinidad and Tobago rugby

Maria Thomas, BA'05 (Anthropology), brings 'power and strength' to sports, management and life.  Read the article.

February, 2022 - Disability Portraits from Brazil

Dr. Pamela Block's participatory research creation project, "Disability Portraits from Brazil", unveils a digital art gallery and podcast channel.  See the website

February, 2022 - Archaeology Opportunity

January 7, 2022 - Western-Trained Egyptologist 'unwraps' mummy mystery

Paleoradiologist Shar Saleem uses CT Scans to reveal Amenhoptep I secrets with the collaboration of Dr. Andrew Nelson.  Read the article.

Dr. Lisa Hodgetts - Faculty Scholar Award Winner for 2021!

Congratulations Dr. Lisa Hodgetts - Faculty Scholar Award Winner for 2021!  This award honors and celebrates outstanding scholarly achievements of a Faculty Member at Western.  Lisa's work focuses on Community-Based Archaeology and fostering equitable and inclusive archaeological practice. 

October, 2021 - Spooktacular Imaging.

Dr. Andrew Nelson has CT-Scanned everything.  Now is your chance to peek inside a warty pumpkin.

July 12, 2021

Lindsay Bell - Article: From Ashes to Diamonds

July 9, 2021

Neal Ferris - Archaeology of Native-Lived Colonialism

July 8, 2021 - Jay Stock - Body of Evidence Article

Prof Jay Stock shares new international research offering an insight on climate change impact on early human size.  Read the article.

April 17, 2020 - Pamela Block - New Book Forthcoming

A new book, co-authored by Professor Pamela Block, examines the question, Can allies be part of the problem? in the realm of disability activism. Allies and Obstacles looks at the history of parent activism, comparing approaches of parents in different impairment groups.

The book is co-authored by Allison C. Carey, Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Shippensburg University, and Richard K. Scotch, Professor of Sociology and Public Policy at the University of Texas, Dallas. Read the article.

February 5, 2020 - Arch/Bioarch Students Study Mummies in Lima, Peru

Anthro Undergraduate students Lauren Poeta & David Seston, and Graduate student Joanna Motley recently participated in cutting edge, non-destructive work in mummy studies in Lima, Peru. Read the article in Western News.

February 4, 2020 - Danielle Alcock Appointed Schulich's Indigenous Leader in Residence

Congratulations to Anthropology graduate Danielle Alcock, PhD 2019, on her appointment as Indigenous Leader in Residence for the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. In this role, Danielle will also be an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. Read the complete announcement.

December 31, 2019 - Graduate Students Completed in 2019

Congratulations to all our graduate students who successfully defended their thesis in 2019!

PhD: Bruce Lawrence, Bimadoshka Pucan, Jennifer Spinney, Kelly Linton, Diana Moreiras Reynaga, Danielle Alcock & Casey Kirkpatrick

MA: Tamara Britton, Sarah Knowles, Jeffrey Grieve, Jessica Lacerte, Kalley Armstrong, Diana Gavric, Jonathan Freeman & Gabryell Kurtzrock Belyea

November 15, 2019 - Spence Lecture with Dr. Shari Forbes

Dr. Shari Forbes (Université de Québec à Trois-Rivères) is our special guest for the annual Spence Lecture. The lecture takes place on Friday, November 15, 2:30pm in UC 3110 (Conron Hall). Read about Shari Forbes research on "body farms" here.

November 14, 2019 - Greg Beckett Explains Causes of Protests in Haiti

In a recent article featured in Western News, Professor Greg Beckett explains the background causes of the current protests in Haiti and why the international community must do more to help the Haitian people during this crisis.

June 21, 2019 - Kalley Armstrong to Coach Indigenous Youth Hockey Camp

Anthropology PhD student Kalley Armstrong was interviewed by CBC Radio about coaching the C.M.O. Youth Hockey Camp 2019 for Indigenous youth. Kalley is the granddaughter of hockey legend George Armstrong. She played hockey for Harvard University and currently coaches the London Devilettes. Read the CBC news article here. 

May 17, 2019 - Western Anthro Celebrates Vanier Scholar Federica Guccini

Congratulations to PhD student Federica Guccini, our fourth Vanier Scholar and first from Sociocultural/Linguistic Anthropology. Federica’s research focuses on Hakka Mauritian Heritage Practices in Mauritius and Canada and examines the meanings of the various languages spoken in the Hakka Chinese community. Read more about Federica's research in Western News. 

April 16, 2019 - New Sociocultural Prof Joining Western Anthro!

We are excited to announce that Dr. Pamela Block will be joining the Anthropology Department in July 2019. Dr. Block received her PhD in Cultural Anthropology from Duke University in 1997, with a specialization in Disability Studies. She comes to us from a position as Professor and Director of the Concentration in Disability Studies for the PhD Program in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences  at Stony Brook University. Her research has focused primarily on Brazil and the United States and has examined the intersections of gender, sexuality, race, poverty and disability. She is co-author of Occupying Disability: Critical Approaches to Community, Justice and Decolonizing Disability (New York: Springer, 2016), and is a collaborator and international partner on a large Brazilian grant for International Scholarly Collaboration and Exchange, "Cultural Practices, Education and Human Rights: Violence, Gender and Diversity" (Brazilian Department of Education). In Fall 2019 she will be teaching a new 3000-level course on Disability and Health in Local and Global Contexts -- stay tuned for more information!

April 7, 2019 - In Memoriam - Alex Totomarovario

We are sad to report that our friend, colleague and longtime research and teaching collaborator Alex Totomarovario has passed away.

Photo taken by Mingyuan Zhang

We are sad to report that our friend, colleague and longtime research and teaching collaborator Alex Totomarovario has passed away. As a teacher at l’Université d’Antsiranana in Madagascar and a collaborator on several research and teaching projects, Alex has played a key role in the lives and work of Western Anthropology faculty members and students over the years. Alex’s important contributions to the education of Canadian and Malagasy students was recognized at Western in 2017 by a Vice-Provost’s Award for Collaborative Teaching. We will miss you Alex.

February 25, 2019 - Bimadoshka Pucan & Museum London Win Heritage Award

PhD Candidate Bimadoshka (Annya) Pucan and Museum London are the winners of a Lietenant Governor's Heritage Award for Excellence in Conservation for the exhibition "Voices of Chief's Point". Congratulations!

January 31, 2019 - Greg Beckett - New Book

Greg Beckett - Forthcoming Book, There Is No More Haiti: Between Life and Death in Port-au-Prince. will be published by University of California Press, March 2019.

December 31, 2018 - Graduate Students Completed in 2018

Congratulations to all our Anthropology graduate students who successfully defended their thesis in 2018!

PhD: Elaine McIlwraith, Mingyuan Zhang, Nathan Dawthorne, & John Moody

MA: Amanda Parks, John Dunlop, Marcelo Herrera, Nadja Schlote, Abdulla Majeed, Rachael Simser, Emily Pitts, Alexandra Nelson, Kara Kelliher, Shane McCartney, Carolina Delgado, Katya Valladares, & Felipe Gonzalez Macqueen

November 14, 2018

Chris Ellis Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

Congratulations to Professor Emeritus Chris Ellis, who is the deserving recipient of the James V. Wright Lifetime Achievement Award from the Ontario Archaeological Society.

November 5, 2018

Anthropology Graduate Program to Offer Collaborative Specialization in Transitional Justice

SGPS has recently approved the addition of Anthropology to the Collaborative Graduate Specialization in Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Reconstruction. Students registered in the Collaborative Graduate Specialization in Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Reconstruction will explore aspects of societal and state transition relating to development, democracy, the environment, the economy, human rights, politics, peace agreements and justice before, at the time of, and post-transition.

September 7, 2018

Western Anthropology to Host 2018 CAPA Annual General Meeting

Western Anthropology will be hosting the CAPA (The Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology) Annual General Meeting Oct. 31- Nov. 3, 2018 at the Delta Hotel London Armories. The CAPA Organizing Committee consists of: Andrew Nelson, Andrea Waters-Rist, Jay Stock & Ian Colquhoun. Read more.

August 24, 2018

Researchers shed new insights into fate of Franklin Expedition

A team of Canadian academic researchers including Anthropology Professor Andrew Nelson have raised serious doubt about the popular belief that lead poisoning played a role in the death of members of the famed Franklin Expedition. The study, Franklin expedition lead exposure: New insights from high resolution confocal x-ray fluorescence imaging of skeletal microstructure, was published today in PLOS ONE. Read more about the study in Western News.

August 20, 2018

Becky Goodwin and Inuvialuit Living History Project team reuniting artifacts with ancestors

As part of the Inuvialuit Living History Project, replicas from the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in Yellowknife, and artifacts from Ivvavik National Park in Yukon, are being brought up to the Inuvialuit Settlement Region. Read the CBC article.

August 4, 2018

Jeff Grieve making interactive digital map of Inuvialuit history and archaeology

MA Candidate Jeff Grieve is in the early stages of making an interactive digital map that would allow Inuvialuit people to access information about their cultural heritage. Read the article in the Inuvik Drum.

August 2, 2018

Ian Colquhoun on the complexity of the "Endangered Species List"

In a recent article for the Conversation, Professor Ian Colquhoun explains the complicated process of compiling and managing the over 91,000 species on the endangered species list. Read the article.

July 23, 2018

Lisa Hodgetts Joins 2018 Students on Ice Arctic Expedition

Lisa Hodgetts joins 100 youth from around the world and an international team of scientists, historians, elders, artists, explorers, educators, leaders, politicians, innovators, polar experts and more on the 2018 Students on Ice Arctic Expedition from July 23-August 7. Follow their journey.

June 28, 2018

Bimadoshka Pucan Chosen for Scientific Expedition The North Pacific 2018

Western Anthropology PhD candidate Bimadoshka (Annya) Pucan has been selected to represent Indigenous Women from around the world on the upcoming scientific expedition The North Pacific 2018 with eXXpedition, an all-female crew of dedicated social innovators and scientists. More information.

June 22, 2018

Lost 19th Century Images Recovered by Western Research Team

Lost 19th century images have been recovered using 21st century technology by a Western interdisciplinary research team. The research findings have been published in the journal Scientific Reports - Nature. The  paper was co-authored by Anthropology Professor Andrew Nelson. Read more.

June 7, 2018

Bimadoshka Pucan Guest Curator of Voices of Chief's Point - Museum London

Ph Candidate Bimadoshka Pucan is Guest Curator for a new exhibit showcasing old recordings of Anishinaabeg songs, stories and prayers left by Robert and Eliza Thompson residents of Saugeen First Nation and Dr. Edwin Seaborn, MD. Voices of Chief's Point runs at Museum London through September 16. Read more.

June 1, 2018

Genetic Survey Reveals Migration Patterns of Early North Americans

An international team of researchers including Christiana Scheib, University of Tartu, Estonia, Genevieve Dewar, University of Toronto and Jay Stock, Western University, concluded that hunter-gatherers crossing into the continent from Siberia first split into two distinct populations. The parallel groups remained in genetic isolation for centuries until they recombined and their offspring populated Central and South America. Read more.

May 30, 2018

Andrew Nelson & Team Solve 2,100 Year Old "Hawk Mummy" Mystery

A tiny Egyptian mummy long believed to be that of a hawk is actually a rare example of a near-to-term, severely malformed fetus. Micro-CT scans determined a 'hawk mummy' at Maidstone Museum UK is in fact a stillborn male human with severe congenital abnormalities that include a malformed skull and vertebrae. An international team's unprecedented analysis was led by bioarchaeologist and mummy expert Andrew Nelson of Western's Department of Anthropology. Read more.

May 17, 2018

Dr. Greg Beckett Joins Department of Anthropology

We are thrilled to welcome another new faculty member, Dr. Greg Beckett to the Department of Anthropology this year. Beckett completed his PhD at the University of Chicago, and before that completed his BA and MA in Anthropology at Western. He was formerly Assistant Professor at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. Dr. Beckett studies crises, disaster and trauma, specifically in Haiti, from the standpoint of moral experience. Read more about Greg Beckett.

May 3, 2018

Dr. Lindsay Bell Joins Department of Anthropology

We are delighted to welcome Dr. Lindsay Bell to the Department of Anthropology this summer. Dr. Bell, a socio-cultural and linguistic anthropologist, was formerly Assistant Professor at State University of New York, Oswego. Dr. Bell researches the ethics and culture of mining industries and corporate-community relationships around resource development projects. Read more about Lindsay Bell.

April 11, 2018

Jay Stock Analyzes Ancient Human Fossil

An international consortium of researchers including Western bioarchaeologist Jay Stock, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History and the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, conducted fieldwork in the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia, where they discovered an ancient bone belonging to an early human of the Homo sapiens species which they were able to directly date. The ancient bone, dating back to 90,000 years ago is the oldest human (Homo sapiens) fossil to have been found outside of Africa and the immediately adjacent Levant, and suggests that people travelled further than initially thought during the first reported human migration into Eurasia. Read the whole article.

March 15, 2018

Lisa Hodgetts - Edward G. Pleva Excellence in Teaching Award

Congratulations to Professor Lisa Hodgetts recipient of the Edward G. Pleva Award for Excellence in Teaching for 2018. This prestigious award recognises Western instructors who inspire active and deep learning in their students. Established in 1980-’81, the University Awards for Excellence in Teaching were named in 1987 in honour of Edward Gustav Pleva, Western’s first Geography teacher in 1938 and head of the department from 1948-1968. Read the complete article in Western News.

February 21, 2018

New Sociocultural Profs Joining Western Anthro!

In summer 2018 we will be welcoming two new faculty members, Dr. Greg Beckett (currently at Bowdoin College) and Dr. Lindsay Bell (currently at SUNY Oswego). Greg Beckett (PhD U Chicago, MA Western) has carried out extensive ethnographic and historical research in Haiti, and in particular on the intersecting urban, environmental, and political crises. His book How Crisis Feels: Living and Dying in Port-au-Prince, Haiti will be published in early 2019 by the University of California Press. He has also published on Caribbean intellectual history and the place of disjuncture and crisis in political and social theory. Lindsay Bell (PhD U Toronto, MA Alaska-Fairbanks) studies the lives of women and men in northern Canada, Alaska, and Finland who are confronting large-scale resource developments (such as diamond mining in the NWT). She is currently involved in a large research project funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation on transparency and ethics in the global gemstone trade. She is co-author of Sustaining the Nation: The Making and Moving of Language and Nation (Oxford University Press, 2015), collaborated on the recent SSHRC-funded project Visualizing Canada's Urban North, and is the editor of the AAA's Journal for the Anthropology of North America.

January 25, 2018

Andrew Nelson Explores Secrets of Canada’s Oldest Documented Hockey Stick

Professor Andrew Nelson & colleague Linda Howie's analysis of the oldest documented hockey stick in Canada is highlighted in a 5 minute Daily Planet segment on the Discovery Channel. The hockey stick, which dates back to the 1770s, was brought to Nelson by the London based company, Material Legacy and is owned by an Ancaster collector of old sports equipment. “To the best of my knowledge, nobody has ever done a CT scan of a hockey stick, much less a micro-CT scan.” Says Nelson. Read the whole article featured in Western News.

Jay Stock Study Reveals Superior Strength of Prehistoric Women

Western Adjunct Research Anthropology Professor Jay Stock was part of a recent study that showed the bone strength of prehistoric women exceeded that of today’s female athletes. Stock explains, “The women who lived 6,000 years ago worked so hard at repetitive upper-body labour every day, they developed strong muscles and bones.” Read the whole article in Western News.

December 2016 - Graduate Students Completed in 2016

Many congratulations to our Anthropology graduate students who successfully defended their thesis in 2016!

PhD: Maricarmen Vega, Laura Kelvin & Joshua Dent

MA: Kyle Forsythe, Kathryn Kotar, Adria Grant, Hilary Agro & Isabella Graham

November 8, 2016 - Aaron Bengall profiled by Faculty of Social Science

Anthropology MA student Aaron Bengall's work on Diabetes has been profiled by the Faculty of Social Science. Read the article.

August 18, 2016 - Jennifer Willoughby Studies Cancer in Mummified Remains

PhD student Jennifer Willoughby's research on cancer in mummified remains is featured by the Faculty of Social Science. Read the article.

May 13, 2016 - The Politics of Food in Buenos Aires, Argentina

In May and June, Dr. Adriana Premat and PhD student Lina Johnston are leading a team of undergraduate students doing ethnographic research on the politics of food in Buenos Aires. Check out their Facebook group page for regular updates: https://www.facebook.com/groups/968080133306634/

April 4, 2016 - Jean-François Millaire Awarded SSHRC Insight Grant

Professor Jean-François Millaire is the recipient of 1 of 8 SSHRC Insight Grants awarded to the Faculty of Social Science this year. Professor Millaire's research program is an anthropological study of early city life in the Andean region of South America, one of the few places where urban society emerged in human prehistory. This five-year study, which builds on previous work by Millaire and his team in coastal Peru, seeks to increase our understanding of the processes connected with the emergence of the first cities in the region and the social dynamics that were both afforded and constrained by this new mode of existence. Congratulations to Professor Millaire and his team on this great achievement!

February 24, 2016 - USC Teaching Honor Roll

Congratulations to Anthropology instructors, Mark Dolson, Olga Kharytonova and Andrew Walsh, who have been named to the USC Teaching Honor Roll in 2014-15.

December 2015 - Graduate Students Completed in 2015

Many congratulations to our Anthropology graduate students who successfully defended their thesis in 2015!

PhD: Jordan Downey, Flannery Surette, Zoe Morris, Ian Puppe, James Keron, Joshua Smith, & Megan Lowthers.

MA: Lara Wood, Rebecca Dillon, Patrick Galler, MD Rashedul Alam, Hallie Goodine-Tennant, Katelyn Mather, Kaitlyn Malleau, & Beheshteh Moazenipour Asil.

October 29, 2015 - Dan Jorgensen's Research Featured in Western News

Dan Jorgensen's latest research on the use of moblie phones and the current drought in Papua New Guinea is featured in the October 29 Western News article, Mobile phones answer call for relief help.

October 8, 2015 - Anthro Vanier Scholar Diana Moreiras Reynaga in Western News

In 2015, Anthropology PhD candidate Diana Moreiras Reynaga was one of four Western students to be awarded the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship. Diana's research focuses on obtaining dietary and geographical information about individuals who were sacrificed by the Aztecs as an offering to the gods. Diana and the other three Western Vanier scholars are featured in the Western News article, Vanier Celebrates Nation's Finest, October 8, 2015.

May 4, 2015

Dr. Andrew Walsh - Conference & Workshop Grant

Professor Andrew Walsh has been awarded a conference and workshop grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation - an organization that supports worldwide research in all branches of anthropology. The award was given to aid the workshop 'The Anthropology of Precious Minerals', 2015, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, in collaboration wiith Dr. Annabel Vallard.

March 19, 2015

Dr. Kim Clark Named Western Faculty Scholar

Congratulations to Professor Kim Clark who has been named one of three new Faculty Scholars in the Faculty of Social Science, and one of twelve from across campus. More information can be found in today's issue of Western News.

December, 2014 -  Completing Graduate Students

Congratulations to our Anthropology graduate students who successfully defended their thesis in 2014:

PhD: Julianna Beaudoin, Jennifer Morgan, Jordan Levy & Kelly Baker

MA: Mbaka Wadham, Steven Naftel, Colleen Haukaas, Mingyuan Zhang, Danielle Alcock, Kristy Nicholson, Emily Wells, Megan Devries, Peige Desjarlais, Jose Sanchez, Tiffany Sarfo & Laura Booth

November 2014

Dr. Marc Blainey - Trent Oshawa Anthropology Lecture Series 2014

Western Anthropology Alumnus Dr. Marc Blainey will be giving a lecture, "Unorthdox Enchantment and Psychedelic Therapy in the Globla Santo Daime Religion" at the Trent Oshawa Anthropology Lecture Series on November 12, 2014. Dr. Blainey is an Instructor with the Department of Anthropology, Trent University, and a Postdoctoral Researcher, Study of Religion, University of Toronto.

October 2014

ROM researchers determine mummy's identity

Researchers have uncovered the real name of a mysterious Egyptian mummy nicknamed Justine. Gayle Gibson, an Egyptologist who teaches at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, was the person who originally nicknamed the mummy Justine. She managed to decipher Justine's real name last week. (Royal Ontario Museum).

James Keron Awarded J. Norman Emerson Medal

At the 41st Annual Meeting of the Ontario Archaeological Society (OAS), held October 24-26, 2014 in Peterborough, James R. Keron was awarded The J. Norman Emerson Medal.  The medal is awarded for outstanding contributions by a non-professional archaeologist to the development of Ontario Archaeology and is the “highest honor the Society can bestow.” Jim (B. Math, University of Waterloo) is an individual who long pursued knowledge of Ontario’s archaeological past as an avocation while working full-time in the banking industry. He managed to complete not only his Honours BA (at Waterloo) but also an MA (Western) via part-time study. During that time he authored several publications on London area archaeology, served  in several capacities on various OAS executives and was heavily involved in publicizing knowledge of Ontario’s archaeological past to the general public. He is currently completing his Anthropology PhD at Western.

March 2014

Faculty Award:

Mike Spence, Professor Emeritus, has been awarded the Canadian Archaeology Association's Smith-Wintemberg Award for his outstanding contributions to archaeology. For more information about the award, visit the CAA website HERE.

Faculty Interview:

Dr. Dan Jorgensen was interviewed on an Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Late Night Live on March 6, 2013, on "The Ok Tedi Mine and Cultural Implications." A podcast of the interview is available at 9 - Click HERE)

Faculty co-authors article:

Ian Colquhoun of the Department of Anthropology co-authored a recent article, Averting Lemur Extinctions amid Madagascar's Political Crisis, in Science. Ian and his collaborators outline strategies for effective management of Madagascar’s protected areas, the creation of more reserves directly managed by local communities, and a long-term research presence in critical lemur sites.

Native to the shrinking and fragmented tropical and subtropical forests of Madagascar, lemurs are facing grave extinction risks driven by human disturbance of their habitats. Combined with increasing rates of poaching and the loss of funding for environmental programs by most international donors in the wake of the political crisis in Madagascar, challenges to lemur conservation are immense. For full article, click HERE.

Student Helps Solve Crimes:

Watch as our one of our PhD candidates, Renee Willmon, helps solve Canadian cold cases on a new true crime docu-drama series  ‘To Catch A Killer’. March 1, 2014 @ 8:00 pm on OWN Canada.  

December 2013

Another PhD Student Wins Award:

Hearty congratulations to Western PhD candidate Jordan Levy. At the annual meeting of the American Anthropological Association held in Chicago last weekend (November 20-24th) it was officially announced that Jordan had been awarded the Society for Latin American and Caribbean Anthropology's 2013 Whiteford Graduate Student Award in Applied and Engaged Anthropology, for his paper entitled "Schoolteachers and National ‘Public’ Education in Honduras:Navigating the Reforms and Re-Founding the State."

MA Student Wins Award:

Our sincerest congratulations to John Dunlop, a Western MA candidate in the Applied Archaeology stream, who was a presented with the award for best student paper given this past weekend at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the Ontario Archaeological Society in Niagara Falls. John’s paper was entitled: "Geophysical Survey Applications to Southern Ontario Archaeology: An Examination of Recent Trends and Future Applications."

PhD Student Wins Award:

Congratulations to one of our Phd candidates, Mathew Teeter, for winning the CAPA student paper prizes awarded at the 2013 Annual Meeting at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) for his poster paper entitled, “Bone health in the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt (150-450AD): confirming the diagnosis of osteoporosis in 4 females using density estimations derived from metric analysis of the first metatarsal”

September 2013

Article by Mike Spence:

"So here we go…"  writes Mike Spence, Professor Emeritus at Western. Mike was recently invited to contribute an autobiographical article to Ancient Mesoamerica looking back over his career as one of North America's most distinguished Mesoamerican archaeologists. The article, “Finding a Balance,” is available in Ancient Mesoamerica (2012), Vol. 23, pp. 1-7. You can read Mike's article by clicking HERE.

A news article in Northern News Services Online featuring Dr. Lisa Hodgetts entitled 'Uncovering history: Ikaahuk Archaeology Project prepares for next year'. 

July 2013

June 2013

The recently awarded SSHRC Partnership Grant has been awarded to a team led by Dr. Regna Darnell to compile, edit and publish the papers of famed anthropologist Franz Boas.

May 2013

Graduate and Post-Graduate Scholarship Award Winners:

A number of graduate and post-graduate students of Anthropology recently have been awarded scholarships/fellowships to support their continuing studies at Western and elsewhere. Hearty congratulations to these award winners who include:

Dr. Mark Dolson (PhD Western) who was awarded a SSHRC Post-Doctoral Fellowship to continue his studies in sociocultural anthropology at Cambridge University in the UK.

Dr. Patty Wells (PhD Memorial) who has received a SSHRC Post-Doctoral Fellowship to come to Western and continue her archaeological researches in faunal analysis working with faculty member Dr. Lisa Hodgetts.

PhD Candidate Paul Szpak who was recently awarded a Killam Post-Doctoral Fellowship to continue his researches in isotopic anthropology post-PhD at the University of British Columbia.

PhD candidate Renee Willmon who was recently awarded a SSHRC Canada Doctoral Fellowship, Canada’s most prestigious doctoral award, to continue her researches in biological anthropology. Renee, who is enrolled in the co-tutelle PhD program combining studies at UWO and La Sorbonne, was also awarded a French Government Scholarship by the Embassy of France in Canada.

PhD candidate Zoe Morris who was recently awarded a Mitacs Post-Doctoral Fellowship to continue her researches post-PhD at Western’s CFI Funded Sustainable Archaeology facility located at the Museum of Ontario Archaeology.

Grants and Honours for Anthropology Faculty:

Congratulations to these department faculty members who were recently awarded external research grants or other honours:

Dr. Regna Darnell sucessfully spearheaded a successful SSHRC Partnership Grant application to compile, edit and publish the papers of famed anthropologist Franz Boas. Dr. Darnell was also among the first group of scholars recently honoured by being named Fellows of the Canadian Anthropology Society. This award has been presented to a select group of individuals “who have built the discipline as we know it in Canada and who have given generously to the public, the discipline and the Society.”

Dr. Christopher Ellis who was recently awarded a SSHRC Insight Grant to continue his archaeological researches at the Late Archaic (ca. 2500–800 BC) Davidson Site in Ontario for 2013-2015. With that award, all archaeologists in the department now have external SSHRCC funding support.

March 2013

2,400-Year-Old Myths of Mummy-Making Busted. Embalming was a competitive business, and the tricks of the trade were closely guarded secrets, said study co-author Andrew Wade, an anthropologist at the University of Western Ontario. See full article HERE.

March 2013

Significant Publications of Doctoral Student

A paper by Anthropology PhD candidate Paul Szpak (Fish bone chemistry and ultrastructure: implications for taphonomy and stable isotope analysis), published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, generally regarded as the top journal in the world for natural science studies related to archaeology, and certainly amongst the top five for archaeology in general, has been rated the hottest or most downloaded/read article in that journal for 2012 by SciVerse ScienceDirect. This paper has already been cited a number of times and often in fields much beyond archaeology per se. Another paper by Paul written with three colleagues (T. J. Orchard, I. McKechnie, and D. R. Grocke), and for which Paul was senior author (Historical ecology of late Holocene sea otters (Enhydra lutris) from northern British Columbia: isotopic and zooarchaeological perspectives), was ranked the 19th hottest article for 2012.

Janurary 2013

Some news conference that Andrew Wade did in Montreal.

http://canadaam.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=853517&playlistId=1.1133944&binId=1.815911&playlistPageNum=1

http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2013/01/25/montreal-mcgill-mummy-reconstructed.html?cmp=rss

http://montreal.ctvnews.ca/new-scans-put-a-face-on-the-redpath-museum-s-mummies-1.1131786

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2013/01/25/montreal-mcgill-mummy-reconstructed.html

November 2012

The 39th Annual Meeting of the Ontario Archaeological Society was held November 9-11 in Windsor, Ontario and Western’s anthropology program was well-represented! Professors Chris Ellis, Neal Ferris, Lisa Hodgetts, Peter Timmins and Christine White, as well as adjunct Professor Fred Longstaffe and Professor Emeritus Michael Spence presented or were co-authors on no less than seven papers. Post-Doctoral Fellow Christopher Watts and Lab Manager Edward Eastaugh contributed to another three papers and graduate students John Dunlop, Adria Grant, Adam Hossack, James Keron, Kelly Miller and Zoe Morris were involved in another six presentations. Ellis, Timmins and Watts also organized and chaired three of the presented symposia sessions and at the meeting banquet, Professor Ellis was presented with the Ian Kenyon Memorial Award by the Society. It is given to a professional archaeologist who over his/her career has “made an exceptional contribution to the development of Ontario archaeology and who has earned acclaim for excellence and achievement.” Five other individuals who have obtained MA or PhD degrees from Western’s graduate program contributed to yet another seven papers.

Please join us in congratulating Anthro PhD student Ian Puppe who has just been awarded The Helen Hornbeck Tanner Student Conference Paper Award for the Best Student Paper at this year's Ethnohistory Conference. His winning paper is entitled "No Home on the Range: Ruin, Reclamation, and Revitalization in Algonquin Provincial Park." This is a huge achievement and well deserved!

October 2012

Mummy with mouthful of cavities discovered. Researchers led by Andrew Wade, then at the University of Western Ontario, used new high-resolution CT scans of his teeth and body, reporting their dental-packing discovery recently in the International Journal of Paleopathology. Researchers said this is the first known case of such packing treatment done on an ancient Egyptian. [MORE]

August 2012

The latest issue of the Cambridge University Press Journal Ancient Mesoamerica (July 2012; Volume 23, pages 1-7) provides an autobiographical sketch of Professor Emeritus Michael W. Spence entitled “Finding a Balance”. The sketch details his career and many contributions to Mesoamerican (and Ontario!) archaeology. Mike is only the fourth Mesoamerican archaeologist to be honoured for their career contributions in this way in that journal.

Two news stories about the project that Namir Ahmed (MA candidate) is leading at the Sustainable Archaeology Facility. They call it the Sustainable Archaeology Animation Unit, for the past summer they've been digitizing artifacts and visualizing Southern Ontario history via CG recreations and interactive environments. Michael Carter and Jenn Morgan, Phd candidates at Western and of course Neal Ferris were instrumental in setting this up.
Link to the CTV story
Link to the LFP Story

Mariacarmen Vega, Bioarchaeology PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology is one of eight Western graduate students have been named recipients of the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, Canada’s most prestigious scholarship for doctoral students. She will use the scholarship to support her research in a project entitled: A history of violence: 3000 years of interpersonal and intergroup conflicts from the Late Pre-ceramic to Republican times in the Peruvian Andes: A bioarchaeological perspective. For more information about his award and project click [HERE].

July 2012

Dr. Chris Ellis, Professor of Anthropology at Western was recently quoted in the London Free Press on the potential significance of human remains found at two locations in southwestern Ontario. 

April 2012

Western Anthropology department members Drs. Andrew Nelson and Neal Ferris discussed the research potential of the Sustainable Archaeology Facility and particularly the new Micro-Ct Scanner housed at that facility, in Western University’s Gazette newspaper. This Canadian Foundation for Innovation funded facility is located adjacent to the Western-based Museum of Ontario Archaeology. [MORE]

April 2012

Congratulations go out to three of our PhD candidates: Dina Najjar, Megan Lowthers, and Candie Thomas who have been awarded the 2012 Africa Institute Student Mobility Award.

April 2012

Canadian archaeologists Brian Deller and Christopher Ellis have been studying the Crowfield site in southwestern Ontario since the 1980s. In a recently published report, the researchers make the bold claim that the area is “one of the most important Paleo-Indian sites ever reported.” [MORE]

Febuary 02, 2012 - Western Award of Excellence 2012

Anthropology Department's Graduate Program Coordinator, Diane Belleville, was awarded the 2012 Western's Award of Excellence. The internal award is designed to recognize the tremendous work staff performs in support of providing an outstanding Western Experience. [MORE]

Diane Belleville truly excels at fulfilling her mandate to provide the best graduate experience for Anthropology MA and PhD students at Western University. She has always embraced any opportunity for the further development of her own skills. In a way, this is simply doing her job, which she certainly does to the best of her abilities. Seen as the department’s ‘unsung hero’ and ‘our dear and grand Diane,’ many students have noted the importance of Belleville’s guidance through the application and admission process, which is, of course, where the student experience begins. Her diligence and communication skills are remarkable, and the always-pleasant, professional and to-the-point attitude is what endears Belleville to all who know her.

by Paul Mayne Western News

January 2012

Ancient Egyptians paid special attention to the organs of their dead, embalming them so they would continue to function in the afterlife. Now it seems they did the same for sacrificed ibis birds, and even packed their stomachs with food so they wouldn't go hungry. This story features Andrew Wade - a grad student in Anthro. [MORE]

January 2012

Matthew Beaudoin was awarded the Society of Historical Archaeology's 2012 Student Paper Award for their conference in Baltimore, Maryland. It's an award presented for best student paper at the conference. The papers title was "Continuously Colonizing the Colonized: Essentialized Colonial Legacies within the Archaeology of Colonialism" and was presented at the 2012 Society for Historical Conference held in Baltimore, Maryland between Jan 4-8, 2012.

January 2012

Two Western researchers have won international grants for their projects, one of which will make the university the "ground zero" of mummy studies. Using CT scans to help him look inside mummies, researcher Andrew Nelson and his team are trying to determine cultural, political and foreign influences in ancient Egypt. [MORE]

October 2011

As many of you already know, the Canadian Association for Physical Anthropology held its 39th Annual Meeting last week in Montreal. Our Department was very well represented, with seven of our Bioarch grad students presenting papers or posters. The Association has just announced this year’s prize winners for the Student Presentation Awards – a big congrats goes out to Andrew Wade, winner of the 2011 Oschinsky-Mckern Award for best student podium presentation for his paper entitled, “Re-evaluating Classical Stereotypes in the Body Cavity Treatment of Ancient Egyptian Mummies”. Well done, Drew!!

August 2011

Archaeologists search for lost graves at Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site. News Link [HERE].

July 2011

We are proud to announce that Melissa Stachel (PhD candidate) is the recipient of the Dr. Benjamin Goldberg Research Award of the UWO Developmental Disabilities Division for 2011 for her project, 'A qualitative, cross-national analysis of the perceptions and experiences of Somali health care professionals working with Somali children with autism spectrum disorders and their families.'

June 2011

We have another award winner to add to our list of high achievers. We are very pleased to say that, at the World Congress on Mummy Studies held in San Diego, Andrew Wade's (PhD candidate) paper "Hearts and Minds: Excerebration and Evisceration in the Egyptian Mummification Tradition" took first place in the student paper competition.

Christopher Ellis was queried and quoted by a reporter from the Associated Press with regards to his opinions on and significance of a engraving on bone of an extinct mammoth, thought to be about 13,000 years old, that has recently been reported from Florida. This article has appeared in many sources such as Maclean’s Magazine.

May 2011

Redpath is participating in the IMPACT (Internet Mummy Picture Archive and Communication Technology) project which seeks to move mummy studies from individual case studies to a broadly based comparative approach by creating a collaborative database of mummy CT scans collected from museums throughout the world. The project’s principal investigator is Andrew Nelson, of the University of Western Ontario, working closely with PhD candidate Andrew Wade. Full Story HERE.

April 2011

Congratulations to Melissa Stachel, a PhD candidate in the Anthropology Department, who, along Victoria Esses, and Gillian King, have just received a University Of Western Ontario Autism Centre Of Excellence Award for their project, "A qualitative, cross-national analysis of the experiences of Somali parents raising children with and without autism." 

R.E. Taylor Award at SAA.
The judges decided to award an honorable mention to Paul Szpak (PhD candidate) for his poster about seabird guano. This honorable mentions come with a one year membership to the Society for Archaeological Sciences.

Joshua Smith, MA candidate, has a successful application for the Robert L. Platzman Fellowship, awarded by the University of Chicago Library. The University of Chicago Library invites applications for short-term research fellowships for use during 2012. Any visiting researcher residing more than 100 miles from Chicago, and whose project requires on-site consultation of University of Chicago Library collections, primarily archives, manuscripts or printed materials in the Special Collections Research Center, is eligible. Support for beginning scholars is a priority of the program. Applications in the fields of late nineteenth- or early twentieth-century physics or physical chemistry, or nineteenth-century classical opera, will receive special consideration. Previous University of Chicago Library research fellowships have been awarded for studies in fields including medieval culture, nineteenth-century American politics, law, theology, urban history, modern literature, and African American history. Joshua will be using the fellowship to do archival research on Action anthropology. 

March 2011

Julianna Beaudoin (PhD candidate) was awarded the RBC Student Community Service Project Grant given by RBC and The Student Success Centre: Careers, Leadership and Experience at UWO. Her project sought funding for a resource library for the Roma Community Centre (RCC) in Toronto. "There was a significant amount of interest in this grant program and the Grants Committee spent considerable effort in making some difficult decisions." She will be working with the RCC to help them build a resource library, which will contribute towards a number of their activities and programs for their members.

February 2011

Christine Boston, PhD Candidate in the Bioarchaeology stream, won first place in the Social Science Oral Presentation Student Paper Competition at the Western Research Forum. The Western Research Forum was held on Saturday, February 26 and is an annual conference hosted by the Academic Committee of the Society of Graduate Students. The purpose of this conference is to provide UWO Graduate Students with a forum to present their research, and it brings together students and faculty from across the faculties. The title of Boston's presentation was, "The Costs of Fitting In: Body Modifications, Identity Communication, and Health" and covered topics which she is focusing on in her doctoral research.

How three Londoners helped identify an unknown soldier

A team including Andrew Nelson and Christine White of the Department of Anthropology, in collaboration with Fred Longstaffe of the Department of Earth Sciences, has successfully identified the remains of an unknown First World War Canadian soldier found at Vimy Ridge. Using a combination of forensic techniques including advanced imaging technology, facial reconstruction, stable isotope analysis, and genetic testing, the team was able to identify the soldier as Pte Thomas Lawless, an Irish immigrant who joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force's 49th Battalion in Calgary. 

January 2011

Matthew Beaudoin (PhD candidate) received an Honourary Mention in the Society of Historical Archaeology student paper competition. It was the 2011 competition for the conference in Austin, Texas. The paper was titled "A Hybrid Identity in a Pluralistic Colonial Context".

2011 Graduate Research in the Arctic

Dr. Karen Pennesi is part of ArcticNet, a Network of Canadian researchers that brings together scientists in the natural, human health and social sciences with partners in Inuit organizations, Northern communities, government agencies and the private sector to study the impacts of climate change in the coastal Canadian Arctic. The ArcticNet community is large, with collaboration occurring among several disciplines and universities. The research questions are fairly broad, inviting new ideas and interests. As a co-investigator with other researchers from Western and the University of Manitoba, Dr. Pennesi currently holds an ArcticNet grant exploring how local communities in Nunavut interpret scientific weather information, and how that information is integrated into their own local or indigenous knowledge.

The main goal is to provide information that can help Northerners cope with and adapt to atmospheric-related hazards. The research team will work together with local Inuit experts in gathering, interpreting and evaluating both qualitative and quantitative data. Two graduate students are currently conducting original research in Iqaluit and Pangnirtung. If the funding is renewed beyond 2011, there will be exciting opportunities for qualified graduate students to participate in future projects. Interested students should contact Dr. Pennesi at pennesi@uwo.ca.

September 2010

Bergpolder and Liskwartier and are the subject of international scientific research. The Dutch-Canadian doctoral student Jennifer Long (30) studied the social life in the public space in the densely populated area of Rotterdam-Noord. Her thoughts: "There are many people living on a very small area. I am surprised and proud that things go on so well"; so started the opening headline of this newspaper article about recently returned UWO PhD candidate, Jennifer Long. Long spent last year in Rotterdam, Netherlands studying how the larger social and political narratives concerning belonging to the imagined community of the Netherlands, affected relations between and amongst individuals at the everyday level. Placing herself within one of the diverse neighbourhoods of Rotterdam North, Long found out firsthand how people deal with larger ideas of integration, immigration and belonging in one’s society. Although the results are not out yet, Long will return to her site this May in order to present some of her preliminary findings to the community. Long says that It will be a great way to ‘face the music’ and have my participants have their own say in the research. Click HERE for full article.

September 9, 2010

Ships, Sailors and Sonar: The HMS Investigator Rediscovery Project 2010, Aulavik National Park - Edward Eastaugh

Come & hear what promises to be a very informative presentation on this attempt to document the 1850 Investigator expedition sent to try and determine the fate of the earlier Franklin Arctic excursion. 8pm. Location: Museum of Ontario Archaeology, 1600 Attawandaron Road, London.

August 21, 2010

The SSHRCC funded archaeological work of Professor Christopher Ellis on Ontario’s pre-ceramic era history, including the discovery of the oldest house known in Ontario (ca. 4500-4000 years old), is highlighted in a recent article that appeared on the Heritage Key website. This website is dedicated to reporting on important archaeological discoveries and the article on Dr. Ellis’ work.

August 1, 2010

Professor Chris Ellis and Adjunct Professor Brian Deller participated in the North Middlesex Shunpiker Tour of historical locations sponsored by the Optimist Club of East Williams Township. This tour was held in conjunction with the 150th Anniversary of the founding of North Middlesex. Stationed at Hungry Hollow near Parkhill, Ontario they provided information and answered questions from tour participants about the rich geological history, as well as the pre-European contact archaeology, of the area. They highlighted the importance of the nearby Devonian fossil beds and the many surface features, such as old abandoned lake shores, representing the late ice age history of the region. They also stressed the fact the area is known province and Canada wide, and even internationally, for the discovery of a number of Ontario’s oldest known archaeological sites (13,000 years old) and the earliest (4000-4500 years old) evidence of a more settled way of life amongst Ontario’s First Nations peoples including one site that has yielded remnants of the oldest houses ever found in Ontario.

July 28, 2010

Edward Eastaugh is currently up north with a team from Parks Canada. They made the front page of the National Post today. Ed called briefly last night and managed to locate the three graves of buried sailors using the magnetometer. That's not mentioned in this article, but there will be 3 more articles over the next few days, so keep an eye on the National Post. Click HERE for full story.

July 16, 2010

Investigating the HMS Investigator

Edward Eastaugh is taking what looks like a sophisticated metal detector to the Arctic in the hopes of uncovering buried archeological treasure left behind from the first explorers to discover the western entrance to the Northwest Passage... See the whole story on the Western News HERE.

July 12, 2010

Hunting for history in the middle of nowhere

Archeology: A UWO archeologist will lead a team to ‘one of the most isolated places on the planet’ to look for the HMS Investigator wreck. By JENNIFER O’BRIEN The London Free Press. 

May 2010

Anthropology Student wins Award!

Congratulations to Tom Porawski who won first place in the graduate student poster competition at the recent Canadian Archaeological Association meeting in Calgary. His poster was titled: Examining Chipewyan, Inuit and European Relations in Northern Manitoba using GIS. Well done Tom!

April 16, 2010

Congratulations to yet another Award winner!

Please join us in congratulating Karyn Olsen who has just been awarded a prize for the Best Student Paper at the Annual Meeting of the Paleopathology Association, held recently in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Karyn presented a paper entitled: "The effects of pathology on inter- and intra-individual nitrogen-isotope compositions of bone collagen from a medieval poorhouse." Congratulations Karyn!

March 24, 2010

SOGS Update: Winners of the 23rd Annual Western Research Forum Awards

Two of our Graduate Anthropology students have been awarded one of these awards. Melissa Stachel received third place in the Mercury Printing Award Poster Session 2. Julianna Butler won first place in the Social Science Oral Presentations.

January 14, 2010

An article in the National Post entitled "Destruction of Haiti’s political, spiritual infrastructure a symbolic blow" "The presidential palace is a source of great pride, but it's also a reminder of the absolute horror of Duvalier's [dictatorial] rule," says Douglass St. Christian, associate professor of anthropology at the University of Western Ontario. "So the Haitians are, on the one hand, going to be traumatized by the ruin of something that's come to represent their emergence from that regime, and on another hand, glad that it's gone." 

December 4, 2009

The Ontario Government, represented by London West MPP and Attorney General Chris Bentley, announced funding for a number of grants to researchers from the University of Western Ontario from the Ontario Research Fund. The announcement was made at the University affiliated Museum of Ontario Archaeology to highlight the fact that one of the major grants awarded, for some $3,911,058, was the Capacities for a Sustainable Archaeology project led by Dr. Neal Ferris who is cross-appointed between the Museum and the Department of Anthropology at Western. Among other things, the award will allow the construction of an addition to the existing Museum that will be used to promote innovative and sustainable use of the province’s archaeological heritage. Dr. Neal Ferris was also interviewed about this grant on A Channel London and Rogers Cable London. For details of this announcement click HERE.

December 2, 2009

The Discovery News feature is about on-going research that Emily Webb, Dr. White and Dr. Nelson, as well as colleagues from Endocrinology, are working on, involving detecting cortisol levels in Peruvian archaeological hair as a new way to assess individual systemic stress.

November 26, 2009

Christopher Ellis and Neal Ferris were recently interviewed and quoted in the Windsor Star newspaper with regard to the significance of the discovery of a 10,000+ year old stone artifact near Amherstburg, Ontario. Chris Ellis was also interviewed about the significance of this find on November 27th on CBC Radio Windsor.

November 26, 2009

The current Master’s research of Anthropology Graduate Student John Moody on faunal assemblages from Arctic archaeological sites was featured in an edition of Western News. Click HERE for a pdf of this article.

November 19, 2009

The efforts of the Social Science Faculty and Anthropology Professor Jean-Francois Millare in establishing an archaeological research centre in Peru was featured in an edition of Western News. Click HERE for a pdf of this article.

November 19, 2009

Anthropology Professor Regna Darnell has donated a large library of works to the Fits Nation Studies programme at Western The donation of this library was featured in an edition of Western News. Click HERE for a pdf of this article.

October 31 - Nov 1, 2009

Some of our current student and faculty will be presenting at the 41st Algonquian Conference this year:

    Karl Hele: Seeding Civilization: Garden River Indian Reserve’s Agriculture Fairs, c.1917-1940’s.
    Gerald McKinley: Two Sides of Darkness: The Wîhtikow/Windigo in Contemporary Indigenous Narrative.
    Maria Manzano-Munguia: "We are More Than That": An Exploration of First Nations People In Urban Centres

July 17, 2009

If you check out the summer '09 edition of the Environment & Sustainability newsletter "Dispatch ES" that was released last month, you'll see on the last page that Shauna Solomon is named among eight E&S grad students (four Master's, four Ph.D. students, with her being the only one from Social Science), who have received the, "2009 Award of Excellence for the Collaborative Program, ... in recognition of their overall outstanding achievements in the Environment and Sustainability Graduate Program". Another feather in her hat!

June 4, 2009

Dr. Lana Williams Awarded Governor General's Gold Medal

Dr. Lana Williams, the first graduate of the new PhD program in Anthropology has been awarded the Governor General's Gold Medal. Dr. Williams research focused on a Roman period cemetery at the Dakleh Oasis in Egypt, exploring diet, disease, demography, and the important role of culture, research that is expanding the field of Bioarchaeology in innovative and important new directions. Congratulations to Lana, and to her doctoral supervisors, Christine White and Fred Longstaffe.

April 28, 2009

Radiologists virtually unwrap mummy’s secrets

Andrew Nelson is mentioned in an article from CMAJ News.

April 23, 2009

Dr. Regna Darnell of Western’s Anthropology department will receive an honorary doctor of letters degree from the University of Waterloo at that University’s Thursday, June 11 convocation ceremony. In announcing the award, Waterloo notes that Dr Darnell as a “leading Canadian anthropologist” and an “internationally recognized scholar” who “has done pioneering work in the history of anthropology, as well as in linguistics and native studies” and that she is a “distinguished university professor at the University of Western Ontario, where she founded and served as director of UWO's First Nations studies program.”

April 16, 2009

Dr. Chris Ellis, in cooperation with Meredith Leonard, education officer of the Museum of Ontario Archaeology, presented an illustrated talk on Archaeology in Ontario to a group of gifted students from the Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board. The students were visiting the Museum to take part in one of its educational programs that involve tours of the archaeology exhibits and adjacent Lawson pre-Contact Iroquoian village as well as other activities.

April 1st, 2009

Eve Cockburn Student Paper Prize

Andrew Wade, a second year PhD student, is the recipient of this award for the paper he presented 'Computed tomography in diagnosis of Paget's disease (osteitis deformans) in archaeological remains' at the North American Paleopathology Association meetings in Chicago on April 1st, 2009. The paper was co-authored by Dr. Greg Garvin at St. Joseph's and Dr. David Holdsworth at Robarts. The paper will be published in the next issue of the Paleopathology Newsletter.

Wednesday, April 1st, 2009 - 12:00 - 1:00 pm North Campus Bldg 293

LIS Doctoral Students Speaker Series

The first speaker in the LIS Doctoral Students Speaker Series is Brad Votour, a PhD Candidate in the Department of Anthropology at Western. Brad will present "North is Freedom: How the Halifax North Memorial Library Creates Sanctuary." [MORE ]

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 - 12:30 pm at the Gallery

Dr. Neal Ferris, Lawson Chair of Canadian Archaeology at Western's Department of Anthropology, will present a public lecture at the Gallery: 'The Archaeology of a Mohawk Village Being a Part of and Apart From 19th Century Colonialism in Ontario'. This program is in conjunction with the exhibitions DAVID KANATAWAKHON: TEKAWENNANOTE (Pictures That Speak) and THROUGH MY EYES ( Photographs by Indigenous Students at Western). Don't miss the exhibitions David KANATAWAKHON (Maracle): Tekawennànote (pictures that speak) & THROUGH MY EYES: Photographs by Indigenous Students at Western - until April 5

Friday, March 27th, 2009 - 12:30 - 1:30 pm SSC 2257

Public Viewing and Showcase lunch on Peru's Mass Grave Mystery (National Geographic Explorer Television Documentary, 2009). Marla Toyne participated in this film production last summer as part of a National Geographic Expedition Council Grant that she was awarded to study the skeletal remains from Kuelap, Chachapoyas, in the northern highlands of Peru. The discovery and analysis of over 100 skeletons with evidence of violent trauma was amazing, and the filming experience was an experience. The film is approximately 50 minutes so there may be a bit of time for discussion afterwards.

Thursday, March 19th, 2009 - Western News

A second year graduate student, Caroline Whippey, was featured in the Western News for her Master's research. This article is called 'Online Gaming Rules Mimic Real Life Values'. See the archived pdf version of this story [ HERE ] found on page 2.

Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 - 12:30 pm McIntosh Gallery

Through My Eyes - Photographs by native Western students. Free artist talk by David Kanatawakhon. For more information click [ HERE ].

March 2, 2009

The Social Science Staff Development has posted this month's special feature on Diane Belleville (Graduate Program Coordinator in Anthropology).

February 28, 2009

A graduate student, Christine Boston, presented the following poster at the Western Research Forum this past weekend and received second place in the multidisciplinary poster session. Andrew Nelson is one of the coauthors.

February 10, 2009

Several department members did presentations on their current research at the Annual “Members Night” held by the London Chapter, Ontario Archaeological Society. Faculty member Chris Ellis, with co-authors and graduate students Jim Keron and Lindsay Foreman and co-author and lab manager Ed Eastaugh, did a presentation on the “2008 Excavations at the George Davidson Broad Point Archaic Site” and graduate student Christine Boston did a presentation on her current research on the developmental effects of cranial modification amongst ancient South American populations.

January 8, 2009

Dr. Lisa Hodgetts was the featured speaker at the monthly meeting of the London Chapter, Ontario Archaeological Society. Her presentation highlighted her recent Arctic research and was entitled: 'The Place Where People Travel: Archaeological Survey in Aulavik National Park.'

January 7-10, 2009

The Society for Historical Archaeology (http://www.sha.org/), the major, international, umbrella organization for archaeologists working on the recent past (since AD 1400), recently held its annual meeting in Toronto at the Royal York Hotel. Dr. Neal Ferris, Lawson Professor of Canadian Archaeology, cross-appointed in the department and at the Museum of Ontario Archaeology, was on the organizational committee for this major meeting and served as Program Chair responsible for developing and facilitating the various meeting symposia.

November 27, 2008

The Lost People of the Baja
From the CBC Documentaries website: Canadian paleo-pathologist Eldon Molto is leading the search for clues of the mysterious Pericu people of Baja California, Mexico - a fierce, independent tribe that disappeared over a century ago, after being exposed to European disease. They left virtually nothing behind but their bones. But by using DNA, Molto is piecing together the story of the Pericu and along the way makes a surprising discovery that raises questions about identity and our own existence.

November 21, 2008

Lisa Hodgetts is a member of the design taskforce for the new Arctic Gallery at the London Regional Children's Museum.

November 15, 2008

Professor Jean-François Millaire provided an archaeological tour of the excavations in progress at the Gallinazo Group site in Peru to approximately one hundred students from the Colegio El Carmelo.

November 8, 2008

The research of Dr. Karl Hele, Department of Anthropology and Director of First Nations Studies at Western, was featured in a front page newspaper article in THE SAULT STAR on November 8/08. The article reported on his research examining how the establishment of the Canadian-American border in the area impacted local First Nations Communities. It also reported on the official launch of his new edited book on the topic of First Nations and Borderlands in the Great Lakes (Wilfred Laurier Press) that was to be held that evening.

November 2008

Dr. Andrew Nelson's work on the ROM mummies was featured on a kids' science TV show: “Unwrapping a Mummy” – Eye Spy - Sci-Q, Discovery Channel/Smithsonian TV (aired November 2008)

October 19, 2008

At the Annual Meeting of the Ontario Archaeological Society in Vaughan, Ontario on October 19, 2008, Dr. Chris Ellis presented an illustrated workshop on the recognition and identification of distinctive Ontario stone artifacts characteristic of the various time periods between 13,000 and 3000 years ago. The audience consisted of professionals, students and interested members of the general public.

October 17, 2008

Nancy VanSas, a current Masters student at the University of Western Ontario, is the Program & Exhibit Coordinator at the Museum of Ontario Archaeology, London. In addition, she is the President of the London Chapter of the Ontario Archaeological Society and the Archaeological Representative for the London Advisory Committee on Heritage (LACH). Nancy recently conducted a session on Careers in Archaeology at the Ontario Archaeological Society Symposium in North York on October 17, 2008.

July 3, 2008

Professor Christopher Ellis presented an illustrated public lecture/talk entitled: “Vignettes of Lambton County (and Vicinity) Archaeology, 13,000 to 500 years ago” to the monthly meeting of the Lambton County Historical Society, hosted by the Arkona Historical Society, Arkona, Ontario on Thursday, June 26, 2008. A description of the presentation was included in the July 3, 2008 issue of THE STANDARD, the newspaper that serves Forest, Arkona and surrounding areas. For doing the presentation, Dr. Ellis received a gift from the Historical Society of a map of important historic and pre-European era locations in Lambton County and a photo of that presentation was included in the article.

June 14, 2008

Professor Christopher Ellis’ archaeological excavations at the 4000 year old Davidson Archaic site near Parkhill & Thedford, Ontario, including the discovery of what are probably the oldest houses known from Ontario, was broadcast on the A-Channel (Channel 10 London) News in a two minute feature segment on July 29/08 (rebroadcast across Ontario on other channels such as CITY-TV in Toronto). Professor Ellis also provided an archaeological tour of the excavations in progress and a talk/presentation on the excavations and research to the over 50 participants of the “Strathroy-Caradoc Communities in Bloom” Bus Tour through southwestern Ontario entitled “A Journey Though Time” led by adjunct department faculty member Dr. Brian Deller on Saturday, June 14, 2008.

April 24, 2008

Professor Jean-François Millaire was a guest speaker at the Canadian Museum of Civilization in conjunction with the special exhibit Secret Riches: Ancient Peru Unearthed. The lecture title was “Tomb Treasures in Pre-Columbian Peru.”

January 19, 2008

Professor Jean-François Millaire was interviewed by Le Devoir on the effects of mining projects on Peru’s archaeological patrimony. Interview in December 2007.

Our First PhD Graduate in 2008

Dr. Chris Ellis (Graduate Chair), Dr. Lana Williams, Diane Belleville (Graduate Coordinator)

We are excited to announce our very first PhD graduate, Dr. Lana Williams. We introduced the PhD program in 2003. Lana successfully defended her dissertation entitled 'Investigating Seasonality of Death at Kellis 2 Cemetery' this past summer (2008) and has taken up a tenure-stream position at Muhlenberg College in Alllentown, Pennsylvania.

Congratulations Lana!

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

By Communications Staff

Using computed tomography, more commonly known as CT-scans, a research team at The University of Western Ontario hopes to unravel the mysteries of three Egyptian mummies on loan from the Royal Ontario Museum.

The CT-scans, which generate three-dimensional images of internal matter, are expected to deliver basic details to the researchers, such as gender and date of death.

It is also possible that artifacts, such as jewelry and amulets may be discovered beneath the bandages.

“This exercise provides us with a very exciting opportunity to use the latest in what medical science has to offer to breathe new life into these messengers from the past,” says Andrew Nelson of Western’s Department of Anthropology and a research associate of the ROM.

Nelson serves as a project co-leader with Western anthropology professor Christine White and Rethy Chhem of the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and London Health Sciences Centre. Roberta Shaw, the Assistant Curator of Egyptology at the Royal Ontario Museum, is another member of the team.

One mummy was excavated by legendary Egyptologist Henri Edouard Naville from Deir el-Bahri (“The Northern Monastery”) in 1906-07. Found in the coffin of a low-ranking “wab-priest,” the adult mummy dates from the 21st Dynasty of Egypt, or about 1000 BC.

The mummy is five feet in length, with as many as 18 layers of bandages. The skull is damaged and hair exposed and partially detached from the skull. While the coffin the priest came from is inscribed for a male, the mummy may not be male. This is one of many mysteries the CT-scan is expected to solve.

The two other mummies are infants. One dates from the Roman Period in Egypt and is covered by a painted shroud, which is frayed at the edges and is 22 inches in length. This mummy was acquired by ROM founder Director C. T. Currelly sometime before 1910. The second mummy has been partially unwrapped. There are no markings to indicate anything about it.

Photo Credit: London Free Press

The Lee Guemple Award in Anthropology

Congratulations to Christina Taggart, this year's winner (2007) of the Guemple Award, pictured here receiving her award from Dean Brian Timney.

Awarded to an outstanding student entering fourth year in an Honours Bachelor Degree in either an Honours Specialization or Honours Major in Anthropology. Selection is based on academic achievement including grades, contributions to The Department of Anthropology and other recognized measures of excellence. The current value of the award is $500.00.

Recent Winners

2006  ◊ Philip Shadd ◊ Honours Anthropology and Philosophy

2005  ◊ Marc Blainey ◊ Honours Anthropology

Dr. Lee Guemple, Professor and Friend of the Department of Anthropology at the University Western Ontario

The award is named for Professsor Lee Guemple. Internationally known for his research among the Canadian Inuit, Dr. Guemple came to the University of Western Ontario in 1970 as Director of the Anthropology Program in the Department of Geography. The new program was so popular and successful he was able to establish it as a separate Department in 1972, a year earlier than planned. He served as the first chair through 1977. Dr. Guemple also served as the primary architect and Graduate Chair of the Department's MA Program in Symbolic Anthropology which began in 1980. He has not only been a major contributor to Anthropology at Western but also in Canada. He was one of the three founders of the Canadian Anthropology Association [CASCA] which is today the major professional organization for Sociocultural anthropologists in Canada. Dr. Guemple retired from the Department of Anthropology in 1996.

Western Award of Excellence 2006

2006 Recipient - Jeannie Taylor

Administrative Officer, Department of Anthropology

As Administrative Officer, Jeannie Taylor plays a central role in day-to-day functioning of a department with 18 full-time and 12 part-time faculty members, two other staff and a graduate program that includes two MA and two PhD steams.
She oversees staff, works with the Chair to prepare and administer budgets and interacts daily with students and faculty members.

“Jeannie is highly intelligent, she is personable, competent and handles great pressure with grace, aplomb and a real sense of humor,” states the nomination letter. “She has an innate ability to recognize significant problems, to devise innovative solutions, and to build consensus among students, staff and faculty.”

The mother of five says she was honoured to be nominated and didn’t expect to be chosen for the newly established award.

“I was so very grateful and proud to be able to share this with Gary, our children and especially my parents,” Taylor-Shaw wrote in a thank you note to nominators.

A supporting letter sums up how many feel about Taylor-Shaw: “I must also confess to a secret envy of the utter competence and efficiency of this woman who has a mind like a steel trap, and remarkable problem-solving abilities. She carries out her responsibilities as office manager with superior judgment and confidence, maintaining diplomacy when it is needed (often) and always offering a friendly, helpful hand. Jeannie is without a doubt, the ‘most valuable player’ of our department, staff AND faculty included.”

Taylor-Shaw has three sisters working at Western. She says they and the rest of her family are proud she is receiving the award. As the eighth of 10 siblings, she looks forward to her large family being at the February 27 event.

January 16, 2004

Scans help reveal mummy's shrouded face. A museum in southern Ontario unveiled the mysterious face of a mummy on Friday. The Chatham-Kent museum waited 60 years to put a face to the mummy. Dr. Andrew Nelson - Full Story on CBC.ca [HERE].