Currents in Anthropology

The Department of Anthropology at the University of Victoria hosts this conference as a celebration of the research efforts of our undergraduate and graduate students. The presentations represent research completed for in-class and out-of-class projects, Honour’s theses, JCURA research, and Master’s and doctoral research. It gives you a chance to enjoy the presentations, ask questions, and to vote for the “People’s Choice Award” for best presentation.

Thursday, April 6, 2023, 10 - 4, Cornett building, UVic

Podium Presentations - Cornett B235

MORNING SESSION (10am-noon)

  • Welcome: Elder Dr. Skip Dick ləx̌ix̌ələq

  • Indigenous Disability and the Case for Intentional Invisibility: Maia Reynard

  • A Landscape Archaeological Approach to Accumulative Stone Throwing in Western Chimpanzees: Robyn Nakano

  • Ancient Indigenous Fisheries Reveal a Warming Ocean in the Northeast Pacific: The Palaeothermometer Approach: Dylan Hillis, Robert Gustas, Daniel Pauly, William W. L. Cheung, Anne K. Salomon, and Iain McKechnie

  • Shelling Oysters Short: Historical Ecology of Olympia Oysters in the Salish Sea: Taylor Vollman

KEYNOTE SPEAKER (noon)

  • Nicole F. Smith, BA, MA UVic Anthropology: Nicole Smith is an archaeologist, founder of Archaeology in Schools, and author of the new book Dig Deep: Connecting Archaeology, Oceans and Us. She is also the Cultural Heritage Initiatives Coordinator for the UN Ocean Decade Collaborative Centre for the Northeast Pacific, and a steering committee member of the Clam Garden Network. She has been involved in archaeological research on the B.C. coast since 2000, collaborating most closely with First Nations communities, the Hakai Institute, Parks Canada, and university colleagues. She has taught undergraduate courses at the University of Victoria, Camosun College, and the Bamfield Marine Sciences Center, and loves working with educators to bring archaeology into elementary and high school classrooms. She believes that archaeological stories can inspire people, empower indigenous youth, and facilitate cross-cultural education and understanding. Nicole holds a BA and MA in Anthropology from UVic.

AFTERNOON SESSION: Honours Presentations (1-3pm)

  • Peering into the Past: Species Identification of Archaeological Pacific Salmon on Southwest Vancouver Island: Freya Harrison

  • Navigating Anthropogenic Landscapes: Behavioural Responses by Great Apes in Disturbed Habitats: Miranda Gilbert

  • Source of the Stone: Lithic Procurement and Provisioning at a Desert Refugium in the Azraq Basin, Jordan: Colton Skead

  • "Not Just a Forum, but a Community": Incel Forums as Sites of Belonging: Paige Leslie

  • Coastal Collaboration: Exploring Emerging Frameworks to Equitably Tackle Marine Debris on the BC Coast: Oriana Smy

  • The Sounds of míqәn: An Embodied Inquiry of Place, Space, and Perception in Beacon Hill Park: Caitlyn Dubé

CURRENTS will be followed by a showing of La Tumba Mambi, a documentary by DJ Jigue and Alexandrine Boudreault-Fournier (summary below)

As a result of the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804), many French settlers travelled to Eastern Cuba with African enslaved people to escape the revolt. The Tumba Francesa Societies, which were known as a brotherhood and a mutual aid network, emerged from these waves of slave migrations. Eventually, they became integral constituents of Cuban culture. La Tumba Mambi is a docu-fiction film based on the Tumba Francesa, La Caridad de Oriente, which is located in the city of Santiago de Cuba. Through the Society’s youngest member, Flavio, who is collecting information about the Tumba Francesa for a school project, we meet his grand-mother Andrea and mother Queli, two charismatic knowledge keepers of their rich cultural traditions. The original film soundtrack composed and produced by Cuban based DJ Jigüe, in collaboration with Tumba Francesa members, is a rhythmic and striking reminder that the present is grounded in a history of struggles for freedom.

 

Posters: COR B250 & hallway

  • Feminine Endings: The Commemoration of Women across a Rural and Urban Anglican Cemetery in Victoria, BC: Emily Besler-Dean

  • Diachronic Developments in the Butchering Patterns of Cattle at Tell Afek, Israel: A Zooarchaeological Perspective from the Bronze Age: Skyler Buchfink

  • Ecological Examination of and Proposed Conservation Strategies for Coquerel's Sifaka (Propithecus coquereli): Abby Flight, Lucy Bridal

  • Navigating Anthropogenic Landscapes: Behavioural Responses by Great Apes in Disturbed Habitats: Miranda Gilbert (JCURA scholar)

  • When We Meet It’s Hom[i]e[s] Again: A Collaborative Film: Isabella Haley (JCURA scholar), Antonio Rojas, Kwami Marcelo, Joshua Parkins

  • Bornean Orangutans: The Gardeners of the Forest: Maya Krieger, Djuna Nagasaki 

  • Taking a Break from the Complexity of Society: The Nature of Gaming and Leisure from the Early Bronze Age Levant: Audrey Lefort

  • An Assessment of Aging Systems in Zooarchaeology: Ellis Martiskainen (VKURA scholar)

  • Connecting Open Science and Archaeology: The University of Victoria Zooarchaeology Lab (UVicZL) Comparative Collection - A Source of Cultural and Ecological Knowledge: Kathryn McKenzie

  • Ethno-Graphic Storytelling and Migration: Mariana Montes de Oca Palau (JCURA scholar) 

  • Subsistence and Activity Areas at Late Helladic Eleon, Greece: Minah Park

  • Conservation Methods for Preserving Wild Populations of the Cross River Gorilla: Cassandra Popoff, Amy Christensen

  • Coastal Collaboration: Exploring Emerging Frameworks to Equitably Tackle Marine Debris on the BC Coast: Oriana Smy (JCURA scholar)

  • The Scientific Method in Palaeoarchaeology: James Ziolkoski (JCURA scholar)

 

2022

Currents in Anthropology Conference 2022

Due to ongoing concerns regarding Covid, we held a limited "Anthropology Honours Plus" event on Friday, April 8, 2022.

This event featured presentations from our five Honours students, accompanied by a showing of the Hostile Terrain exhibit and selected posters from this past year’s ANTH classes and by our JCURA students.  

ANTH Honours presentations
11:30 – 1:30 in COR B143
Honours papers can be found here.
  • Lyndsay Dagg: The Influence of Feng Shui on Cemetery Design: A spatial analysis of the Chinese Cemetery in Victoria, BC.
  • Katherine Strom Trudel: Charitable and Community Food Access in Victoria BC: Understanding the lived experience of mothers and caregivers
  • Gabe Mara: A Search for Meaningful Place: Lifestyle migrations and mobilities in Tofino, BC
  • Rachel Hooton: Exploring Intertidal Stone Elements at ȾEL ̧IȽĆE/ c̓əl̓íɫč
  • Sally Martin-Danman: The Challenges associated with Children’s Burials in the Middle Helladic Argolid in Asine, Greece
Hostile Terrain exhibit
10:30 – 2:30 in COR B237
Poster presentations
10:30 – 2:30 in COR B235 & B250

2020 and 2021

Currents in Anthropology Conference 2020 and 2021

In support of UVic’s efforts to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus, which included the cancelation of large gatherings and events, the Department of Anthropology had to cancel the 2020 Currents in Anthropology (originally scheduled for April 2) and we didn't plan one for 2021. We are disappointed at losing the opportunity to share in the exciting research being carried out by our students, but this is in the community’s best interests.

2019

The Department of Anthropology held its 5th Annual Currents in Anthropology Conference on Thursday, April 4, 2019.

Thank you to the emcees Seema Prasad and Tristan Cyr. You both did a wonderful job.

Congratulations to our Currents in Anthropology 2019 conference winners,

WINNERS

Podium Award Winners:

  • Undergraduate non-honours: Caitlyn Craig: A Taphonomic Approach to the Study of Heat Treating Ostrich Eggshell Beads from the 11,500 year old site Grassridge (South Africa).
  • Undergraduate honours: Adele Bibault: Lost and Found: Reclamation and Exhibition of Childhood Artwork from Residential Schools and What it Means to Survivors.
  • Graduate: Anureet Lotay: #Iam1in4: Social Media and Pregnancy Loss Stigma

Poster Award winners:

  • Undergraduate: Mikaila Hogan, Micaela Twaddle, Haileigh Hay: Monument Analysis of Pioneer Families of Metchosin
  • Graduate: Jack Baker: “Remote of Sensing Lhuq’us”: mapping Hul’q’umi’num’ culturally important seaweeds

People’s Choice Award winner:

  • Emily Thiessen: The Duck Pond: Exploring Comics Ethnography 

HONOURABLE MENTION

Podium Honourable mention:

  • Emily Thiessen: The Duck Pond: Exploring Comics Ethnography

Poster Honourable mention:

  • Nicole Achtymichuk: Toward a Potential Model for Locating Clam Gardens on the Northwest Coast

Thank you & congratulations to all of you on all your amazing work.

-------

As in previous years, this conference featured a special session for the Honours presentations and celebrated the research and academic excellence of our students. Podium and poster presentations  highlighted the research activities of both our Undergraduate and Graduate Students. 

The  keynote address was by an Anthropology's alumnus: Mr. Bradley Clements, MA.

During both of his degrees at UVic (BA in Anthropology and Applied Ethics, MA in Visual and Material Anthropology), Bradley Clements conducted research with Survivors of the Alberni Indian Residential School and museum professionals working in the Alberni Valley Museum and Canadian Museum of History.  This research was aimed to better understand experiences of working together to represent the history and experiences of Canada’s residential schools, and to improve museum practices of relating with source communities.  During, between, and since his studies at UVic, Bradley has worked and volunteered with various museums, galleries, and collections, primarily the UVic Legacy Art Galleries, where he has conducted curation, collections research, and programming and community engagement.

Conference Program

Conference poster

Podium Presentation Schedule (Cornett B235)

Poster Presentations (Cornett B250) - revised

If you would like to volunteer or have any questions, please email Jindra at anthtwo@uvic.ca

Thank you to the sponsors – the Department of Anthropology and the Faculty of Social Sciences Dean’s Conference Fund.

Thank you to the Bureau of Anthropology Students (B.O.A.S.) for all their assistance!

Come out and see your fellow students’ research – come for a talk or two, browse the posters, or stay all day

2018

The Department of Anthropology hosted its 4th Annual Currents in Anthropology Conference on Thursday, April , 2018. It was a celebration of the research and academic excellence of our students. Podium and poster presentations will highlight the research activities of our Undergraduate and Graduate Students.  

The day included a keynote address by an Anthropology's alumna Dr. Genevieve Hill, Anthropology Collections Manager and Researcher, Royal BC Museum. 

Podium Presentations: COR B235: 10:15 - 3:15

Poster Presentations:  COR B250: 10:00 – 3:30

Complete Conference Program

Thank you to the sponsors – the Department of Anthropology and the Faculty of Social Sciences Dean’s Conference Fund.

Thank you to the Bureau of Anthropology Students (B.O.A.S.) for all their assistance!

Thank you to all who helped make it a success. 

2017

Keynote Address: Jude Isabella, B.A. (Rhode Island), M.A. (UVic)

Jude Isabella completed her interdisciplinary MA in Anthropology and Writing at UVic in 2013. She is a writer with a particular focus on science, health and the environment. Salmon; A Scientific Memoir (published 2014), based on her MA research, chronicles the 4 years she spent with scientists studying British Columbia’s coastal ecosystem. Currently the Editor in Chief of Hakai Magazine, Jude was the managing editor of YES Mag, a Canadian science magazine for kids for over a decade.  As a freelancer, she has written for numerous publications including Archaeology Magazine, Spirituality and Health Magazine, WILD, Nautilus, New Scientist, BC Magazine, Reader's Digest, BBC Wildlife, Loh Down on Science, Blue Ridge Press, and The Tyee. Jude also writes science books for children, including Chit Chat, Celebrating the World's Languages and Fantastic Feats and Failures, which won the American Institute of Physics award for writing in the children’s category.

2017 Currents Program

Thank you to the sponsors – the Department of Anthropology and the Faculty of Social Sciences Dean’s Conference Fund.

Thank you to the Bureau of Anthropology Students (B.O.A.S.) for all their assistance!

2016

Our Keynote speaker, Jennifer Schine, will talk about how Anthropology contributes to her career. Jennifer is a sound artist, broadcaster, and researcher whose work explores the oral histories and soundscapes of coastal British Columbia. She has experience working as an ethnographer with communities from Cape Town to New York City and throughout Canada. Passionate about public engagement and collaborative projects, Jennifer has extended her academic work into film, radio, electroacoustic composition, and art installations. These have been exhibited and broadcast widely, receiving national and international acclaim. As an educator, Jennifer teaches courses and leads workshops in both the city and the wilderness. She holds an MA in Communication from Simon Fraser University and a BA in Anthropology from the University of Victoria. Currently Jennifer works as a Research Coordinator at The Firelight Group, where she supports community-based projects across Canada. In her spare time Jenni likes to hang out around boats, and she currently serves on the board of Salmon Coast Field Station, in the Broughton Archipelago, BC

2016 Currents Program

Thank you to the sponsors – the Department of Anthropology and the Faculty of Social Sciences Dean’s Conference Fund.

Thank you to the Bureau of Anthropology Students (B.O.A.S.) for all their assistance!

2015

Our Keynote speaker, Rachel Holmes, will talk about how Anthropology contributes to her career. Rachel completed an Honours BA (Political Science) at the University of Victoria, followed by an Interdisciplinary MA in Anthropology and Political Science at UVic in 2005. She has recently been appointed as the Executive Director of Intergovernmental and Community Relations, Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation.

2015 Currents Program

Thank you to the sponsors – the Department of Anthropology and the Faculty of Social Sciences Dean’s Conference Fund.

Thank you to the Bureau of Anthropology Students (B.O.A.S.) for all their assistance!

Come out and see your fellow students’ research – come for a talk or two, browse the posters, or stay all day!