Scientific Recovery Experts
Stephen Acabado
Director
Stephen Acabado is the Director of the UCLA Center for Archaeological Research and Recovery. He specializes in landscape archaeology, heritage conservation, and Indigenous knowledge systems. His work is central to building partnerships that advance both academic research and community-driven archaeology in Southeast Asia.
Madeleine Yakal
Madeleine Yakal is an archaeologist with extensive experience in Southeast Asian heritage management. She focuses on cultural sensitivity and ethical practices in archaeology, ensuring that all recovery efforts respect local communities and the historical significance of the sites.
Piphal Heng
Piphal Heng is a leading expert in Cambodian archaeology, with a focus on the Angkor region. His extensive knowledge of Cambodian landscapes and history plays a critical role in guiding the Cambodia Closure Initiative’s fieldwork and ensuring that the projects are both scientifically robust and locally relevant.
Justin Dunnavant
Justin Dunnavant is a maritime archaeologist and Assistant Professor at UCLA whose research focuses on shipwrecks, the relationship between ecology and enslavement, and the African Diaspora. His work spans underwater archaeology and historical recovery, with a commitment to advancing archaeology through technological innovation and community-based practices.
Thomas Wake
Thomas Wake is a zooarchaeologist and the Director of the Zooarchaeology Lab at UCLA, where he focuses on the analysis of animal remains to understand past human-environment interactions. His work has been central in advancing forensic applications within archaeological research.
Graduate Students
Mark Francisco
Mark Francisco is a historian and field archaeologist with a strong focus on Southeast Asian history and archaeological practice. His interdisciplinary expertise bridges historical analysis and field archaeology, contributing to both the contextual understanding of recovery sites and hands-on excavation work.
Earl John Hernandez
Earl John Hernandez is a rising researcher and field archaeologist whose contributions to excavation and laboratory analysis bring cutting-edge methods to the forefront of the CARR. His application of GIS and other remote sensing technologies in the field strengthens the recovery and documentation processes of sites.
Collaborators
Adam Lauer
Adam Lauer is a biological anthropologist and archaeologist with a focus on the Pacific and East/Southeast Asia. His expertise helps combine archaeological and forensic methodologies ensuring projects are methodologically and scientifically robust.
Kevin di Modica
Kevin di Modica is the assistant Director, of the Scladina Cave Archaeological Centre, Belgium. He is one of the most renowned Belgian specialists on the Middle Palaeolithic stone industry.
Martha Bakara
Martha Bakara works for the Center for Collection, Studies and Documentation at the Prehistomuseum, Liege, Belgium.