Expeditions is founded upon a vast network of enthusiasts that make our programs work each year. Information on the faculty joining us for this years’ edition can be found below. Not all of them will be present in all three sessions, as they all are volunteers taking time off from their regular work or studies.
May 10 - May 30 Faculty
Boston University, USA
Having Greek-American roots led Hannah to study Anthropology in the US, and Southeast European studies in Greece. Her work primarily centers on various projects of religious identity, group and boundary maintenance, and narratives of belonging. Hannah first came to Gozo as a student in 2015 and has returned as staff each year since. On the island, she specifically studies storytelling motifs and food production as a consumable symbol of collective identity. You can often find her making fried green tomatoes and zucchini fritters or doing yoga on the roof.
Expeditions, Research in Applied Anthropology, Belgium
The chairman of Expeditions and program director of the summer school. As a researcher, his main focuses are the anthropology of food while also having a great interest in architecture and urban planning topics. In 2020, originating as a ‘lockdown hobby’, he started a guitar building course and soon ‘anthropologized’ this new pastime into a personal research project on the physical and museological relationship between humans and musical instruments. He has worked as a researcher for Expeditions since 2003.
University of Calgary, Canada
Kristan's time as a field school student in 2018 was spent exploring the ways the food environments in Gozo have intersected with other cultural and geopolitical elements in Malta's recent history to shape the health of Gozitans today. Her work at the University of Calgary since then has built on this idea by blending anthropology with data science to understand the health inequities experienced by socially marginalised populations. As a former competitive swimmer and professional swim coach, Kristan loves being in the water and will likely be found taking her siestas at one of the many beautiful bays and beaches around the island.
June 4 - June 23 Faculty
Boston University, USA
Having Greek-American roots led Hannah to study Anthropology in the US, and Southeast European studies in Greece. Her work primarily centers on various projects of religious identity, group and boundary maintenance, and narratives of belonging. Hannah first came to Gozo as a student in 2015 and has returned as staff each year since. On the island, she specifically studies storytelling motifs and food production as a consumable symbol of collective identity. You can often find her making fried green tomatoes and zucchini fritters or doing yoga on the roof.
Oxford Brookes University, UK
During their stay on Gozo in 2022, Jacob conducted his first experience of anthropological fieldwork with OtBT. His research followed a local queer organisation, and the impact increased queer legal protections are having on the lived experience of young LGBTQIA Maltese. They found this area particularly interesting when considering the high demographic of Catholics on the island. Benefitting from personal growth as a student at the summer school, Jacob is looking forward to sharing his experience in the capacity as a staff member and returning to the beautiful Xlendi. A keen advocate for sustainability and environmentalism, Jacob is always up for a hike and chat on wildlife, conservation, or vegan cakes.
University of Calgary, Canada
Kristan's time as a field school student in 2018 was spent exploring the ways the food environments in Gozo have intersected with other cultural and geopolitical elements in Malta's recent history to shape the health of Gozitans today. Her work at the University of Calgary since then has built on this idea by blending anthropology with data science to understand the health inequities experienced by socially marginalised populations. As a former competitive swimmer and professional swim coach, Kristan loves being in the water and will likely be found taking her siestas at one of the many beautiful bays and beaches around the island.
University of Leuven, Belgium
Our Belgian-born research and field work mentor who gets lost between human geography and anthropology now and then. Her research interests include migration and mobilities, the anthropology of food, and manifestations of difference and inequality in the organization of space. She has carried out research on the savory ‘pastizzi’ as cultural brokers on Gozo, and remains fascinated by stories of change on the island. Marjan stays up late for discussions about methodology, creative ways to share research findings, and most other topics (given that they come with a late-night snack).
University of Oslo, Norway
During their stay on Gozo in 2022, Jacob conducted his first experience of anthropological fieldwork with OtBT. His research followed a local queer organisation, and the impact increased queer legal protections are having on the lived experience of young LGBTQIA Maltese. They found this area particularly interesting when considering the high demographic of Catholics on the island. Benefitting from personal growth as a student at the summer school, Jacob is looking forward to sharing his experience in the capacity as a staff member and returning to the beautiful Xlendi. A keen advocate for sustainability and environmentalism, Jacob is always up for a hike and chat on wildlife, conservation, or vegan cakes.
University of Central Florida, USA
Yuvia was born in Florida, where she studied Cultural Anthropology at the University of Central Florida. She is currently navigating her way into a graduate program, but for now, she lives in Texas with her partner and pet cat Guava. Her first student session in August 2023 was spent alternating between the coolness of local cafes, museums, shops, and galleries, and scorched fields ripe with fennel, oat tops, and capers. With her digital camera always within reach, she studied public third spaces as places of community learning & heritage, and experimented with visual methods of ethnography. While on Gozo, she's always down to go foraging, chat about intuition in fieldwork over tea, practice Spanish, or get creative with field notes and photography!
July 1 - July 20 Faculty
Expeditions, Research in Applied Anthropology, Belgium
Graham joined the field school as a student in 2012 and during his time on Gozo he spent far too much time in the sun at the worst times of day. To cool off he spent his siestas playing bocce with the older crowd in Sannat, which led him to focus his research on decision making and indeterminacy within games, sport, and life itself. Currently, he works as a Product Manager for a sustainability-focused meal delivery company that connects local, independent restaurant operators in North America with corporate customers. In his spare time, he likes to stay active by playing amateur/club rugby, attending functional fitness classes, and getting out on the hiking trails of Eastern Pennsylvania. He also has been dedicating a portion of his free time in the summers to gardening and likes to donate any surpluses to his local community.
University of Illinois, USA
Jacob participated as a student in the field school in the summer of 2018, on Gozo. His fieldwork then focussed on the formation and growth of sports clubs around the island and how their membership, resources, and growth strategies can give us some insight into the effects of globalization and neoliberal policies on people and communities, especially in the rural, “peripheral”, communities of Gozo. He looks forward to returning to Gozo as a staff member this summer, meeting and learning from students and staff, and pursuing his research.
Georgetown University, USA
Julia first attended Off the Beaten Track as a student in 2022 where she focused on history-making, narrative, and identity at Gozo’s Citadel. In her time at Georgetown, her research focussed on similar topics within the context of place-making in the “American West." She hopes to continue working with these themes as she cross-pollinates them with more in-depth fieldwork and some additions from her deep interests in ecology, philosophy, and spirituality. Originally from Denver, Colorado, Julia now resides in Washington D.C. where she enjoys lots of time in the kitchen, concerts, yoga, and time outside with friends."
Royal College of Art, United Kingdom
Le attended the field school as a student in the summer of 2023. During this time, she traced the potatoes of Gozo, which connects self-sufficient agriculture, the local economy, and global food trade. Le is an interdisciplinary researcher who moves between design and anthropology. She often employs creative and visual methods in her research and seeks possibilities for action. Her research focuses on the contextual and material cultural changes brought about by the regional movement of food, aiming to challenge the binary opposition between food localization and globalization.
University of Newcastle, Australia
Mel keeps busy being a mother and a Ph.D. student and Research Assistant at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Her research interests are psychosocial care and equitable healthcare for people with a cancer diagnosis and their loved ones. She enjoys combining quantitative and qualitative research methods, including creative research methods. As a student at the field school in 2018 and as staff in 2019, Mel's research focused on edgework and emotional labor in scuba dive instructors in Gozo.
University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Seb is currently affiliated with the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, where he studied psychology. In the field school, his research interests lie in exploring how sports clubs in Gozo construct rivalry and relate to other hubs of community identity both amongst the clubs and towns of the island as well as between Gozo and mainland Malta as a whole. In the summer of 2023, Seb joined the field school, where he attended preseason matches and engaged with supporter clubs around the island. He is a sports fan himself, and when he gets the opportunity, he plays rugby and football with work teams. He’s looking forward to returning to Off the Beaten Track, meeting new people from the field school, learning more about the island, and diving into the water at Xlendi Bay.
July 26 - August 14 Faculty
University of Kansas, USA
Anna first attended Off the Beaten Track field school as a student in June 2018. While there she was interested in learning about local artists and their stories and the importance of art in Gozo. Anna will start her masters program in Museum Studies this fall at the University of Kansas. Anna loves coffee, long talks about anthropology and life, and good community. Anna is excited to return to Gozo this summer as a staff member and getting to meet and learn from all those around her!
The Ohio State University, USA
Emily participated in the Off the Beaten Track 2022 Summer School program as a student. In Gozo, she researched the impact of football on community and identity. Beginning in Autumn 2023, Emily will be a Ph.D. student at The Ohio State University. She is particularly interested in studying sports and mental health with an emphasis on promoting protective factors. Emily is very excited to return to Gozo and Off the Beaten Track to continue to learn new ideas from and develop friendships with Gozitans and summer school staff and students alike. This summer, she will continue her quest to find the best ice cream/gelato in Gozo. Grab time with Emily whenever you need an adventure or a laugh!
University of Leuven, Belgium
An a-disciplinary geographer who graduated at the university of Leuven, Belgium and worked at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium and the University of Urbino, Italy. His research interests are in political ecology, with a focus on agro-ecological innovation and land use regulation, and the geographies of diversities (in particular cultural and sexual diversity); he is very keen on methodological issues and discussions, and loves to experiment with graphics in academic research, from boredom-born research meeting droodles to graphic novels as a medium to communicate research findings.
University of Leuven, Belgium
Our Belgian-born research and field work mentor who gets lost between human geography and anthropology now and then. Her research interests include migration and mobilities, the anthropology of food, and manifestations of difference and inequality in the organization of space. She has carried out research on the savory ‘pastizzi’ as cultural brokers on Gozo, and remains fascinated by stories of change on the island. Marjan stays up late for discussions about methodology, creative ways to share research findings, and most other topics (given that they come with a late-night snack).
University of Newcastle, Australia
Mel keeps busy being a mother and a Ph.D. student and Research Assistant at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Her research interests are psychosocial care and equitable healthcare for people with a cancer diagnosis and their loved ones. She enjoys combining quantitative and qualitative research methods, including creative research methods. As a student at the field school in 2018 and as staff in 2019, Mel's research focused on edgework and emotional labor in scuba dive instructors in Gozo.
AP University of Applied Science, Belgium
Nathalies first visit to Gozo was in 2014, not as an anthropologist, but as a curious beekeeper. She wanted to see the native Maltese bee and the unique way the Gozitans keep them. With a background in (radio)journalism, Nathalie sees many similarities with anthropology. Both disciplines benefit from an interest in people and their environments, conducting thorough research, asking the right questions (and daring to do so). So, good journalism and good anthropology have the same mission: understanding people and their stories in a deeper, more meaningful way. As an audio producer, Nathalie always keeps her ears open for all kinds of sounds and wonders what they might mean for the place she is in, or how these sounds can influence that place. However, the most peace she finds in listening to silence. And in her morning coffee.
Expeditions, Research in Applied Anthropology, Belgium
The chairman of Expeditions and program director of the summer school. As a researcher, his main focuses are the anthropology of food while also having a great interest in architecture and urban planning topics. In 2020, originating as a ‘lockdown hobby’, he started a guitar building course and soon ‘anthropologized’ this new pastime into a personal research project on the physical and museological relationship between humans and musical instruments. He has worked as a researcher for Expeditions since 2003.
Expeditions, Research in Applied Anthropology, Belgium
Sofie joined the Off the Beaten Track Summer School in 2024, after they were in touch with Expeditions a couple of years ago during their studies in Anthropology at KU Leuven. With their background in social work, music and youth work and a master’s thesis to write, Sofie conducted fieldwork with kids playing the drums in Brussels, Belgium. Soon they will start a job as social worker with cultural minorities, but their interest in anthropology and its field will always be there. During the first summer school of the year, Sofie got interested in the Latin American community in Gozo and is very enthusiastic to possibly pursue this research topic some more. Sofie is also always up for live music, dancing and a game of volleyball.
Off the Beaten Track - Board of Directors
The current board of directors of the field school. Not all of them will be available in each session, but each session will have at least one of these directors on site.
Boston University, USA
Having Greek-American roots led Hannah to study Anthropology in the US, and Southeast European studies in Greece. Her work primarily centers on various projects of religious identity, group and boundary maintenance, and narratives of belonging. Hannah first came to Gozo as a student in 2015 and has returned as staff each year since. On the island, she specifically studies storytelling motifs and food production as a consumable symbol of collective identity. You can often find her making fried green tomatoes and zucchini fritters or doing yoga on the roof.
University of Leuven, Belgium
An a-disciplinary geographer who graduated at the university of Leuven, Belgium and worked at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium and the University of Urbino, Italy. His research interests are in political ecology, with a focus on agro-ecological innovation and land use regulation, and the geographies of diversities (in particular cultural and sexual diversity); he is very keen on methodological issues and discussions, and loves to experiment with graphics in academic research, from boredom-born research meeting droodles to graphic novels as a medium to communicate research findings.
University of Leuven, Belgium
Our Belgian-born research and field work mentor who gets lost between human geography and anthropology now and then. Her research interests include migration and mobilities, the anthropology of food, and manifestations of difference and inequality in the organization of space. She has carried out research on the savory ‘pastizzi’ as cultural brokers on Gozo, and remains fascinated by stories of change on the island. Marjan stays up late for discussions about methodology, creative ways to share research findings, and most other topics (given that they come with a late-night snack).
University of Newcastle, Australia
Mel keeps busy being a mother and a Ph.D. student and Research Assistant at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Her research interests are psychosocial care and equitable healthcare for people with a cancer diagnosis and their loved ones. She enjoys combining quantitative and qualitative research methods, including creative research methods. As a student at the field school in 2018 and as staff in 2019, Mel's research focused on edgework and emotional labor in scuba dive instructors in Gozo.
Expeditions, Research in Applied Anthropology, Belgium
The chairman of Expeditions and program director of the summer school. As a researcher, his main focuses are the anthropology of food while also having a great interest in architecture and urban planning topics. In 2020, originating as a ‘lockdown hobby’, he started a guitar building course and soon ‘anthropologized’ this new pastime into a personal research project on the physical and museological relationship between humans and musical instruments. He has worked as a researcher for Expeditions since 2003.