Hello, my name is Dani and last month I joined the Coastal & Marine team in Salisbury as a Project Manager. I have recently arrived from Australia where I worked as a maritime archaeological consultant for six years. My previous work experience includes terrestrial, coastal and offshore projects for various government bodies and developers all around Australia. As part of a small company (of up to five staff) I was involved in every aspect of a project from tendering, client liaison, research, inspections, assessments, report writing and heritage management.
My love for marine archaeology began as an undergraduate volunteer at the Shipwreck Galleries of the Western Australian Museum while photographing artefacts from the Dutch VOC shipwrecks of Batavia (1629), Vergulde Draek (1656), Zuytdorp (1712) and Zeewijk (1727). This led me to a Masters in Maritime Archaeology at Flinders University of South Australia which also fostered my interest in the archaeology of jetties, submerged aircraft sites and iron shipwrecks.
As a student I started an initiative called ‘Take the Plunge – Protect Australia’s Heritage’ which sought to raise awareness and support for Australia’s ratification of the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage. In 2016, I was elected as Vice President of the Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology (AIMA), an accredited UNESCO NGO to the 2001 Convention, and late last month I had the opportunity to represent AIMA at UNESCO meetings in Paris! This was a fantastic experience and a great introduction to some of the key players in the northern hemisphere.
I am looking forward to taking on project work, learning more about the UK and using my international experience to explore some potential new directions for Wessex Archaeology!