معرفی
Lisbeth Louderback is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Utah and serves as the Curator of Archaeology at the Natural History Museum of Utah (NHMU), where she also directs the Archaeobotany Lab. Since 2022, she has held the rank of Associate Professor, and from 2014 to 2022, she was an Assistant Professor. She is also a Senator at the University of Utah as of August 2024.
She earned a BA in Psychology and Biology from Mills College (1999), followed by two MA degrees in Anthropology from the University of Nevada, Reno (2007) and the University of Washington (2009), and a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Washington (2014).
Her research focuses on the ecology of human-plant relationships, using archaeobotanical and paleoecological methods to understand dietary shifts over time. Key themes include:
- Starch granule analysis of ancient plant use
- Domestication and transport of Solanum jamesii (Four Corners potato)
- Climate-driven dietary change in the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau
- Gendered foraging strategies and subsistence patterns
- Lithic investment and mobility modeling
She has led or co-led over 20 major research grants, including NSF-funded projects on potato domestication, Great Basin geophyte use, and Paleoindian plant use. Her work has been recognized with awards such as the Presidential Award from the Great Basin Anthropological Association (2023) and the Yeager Award for Scholarly Excellence in Archaeology.
She teaches courses including Paleoethnobotany, Archaeology and Paleoecology of the Arid West, and Thesis Research-PhD, and mentors graduate students in museum collections and field-based research.
She is actively involved in community outreach, including collaborations with the Bureau of Land Management, Red Butte Garden, and Native American tribal communities.
