Dr. Heather Walder

Dr. Heather Walder is an anthropological archaeologist, an alumna of UW-Madison (Ph.D. ’15), and currently works as an Assistant Teaching Professor at UW – La Crosse. Her dissertation research UW- Madison was a regional study that obtained new data from 38 archaeological site collections dating to the 17th and 18th centuries in the Upper Great Lakes region. Through compositional and attribute analysis of glass and metal trade items, Heather identified patterns related to the chronology and spatial patterning of Indigenous Nations’ interactions during this early colonial period. She remains a Research Associate of the Field Museum and has collaborated with archaeological scientists around the world, co-editing an open access volume published in 2022: The Elemental Analysis of Glass Beads.

Since 2018, she has co-directed Geté Anishinaabe Izhichigéwin Community Archaeology Project (GAICAP), a collaboration between academic archaeologists and the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa’s Tribal Historic Preservation Office.  Together, they are working to investigate and protect archaeological sites in Red Cliff, Wisconsin and bring the past to life for the community. In this community-engaged, interdisciplinary, and collaborative work, GAICAP brings together Ojibwe knowledge frameworks, language, oral history, and cultural knowledge with scientific approaches to anthropology and archaeology.