Dr. Tom D. Andrews

Biography

Tom Andrews has worked as an archaeologist and anthropologist in the Canadian North for four decades. Working for the Dene Mapping Project (1980-1989), a University of Alberta-based research group supporting the Dene Nation’s land claims negotiations, was critical to his learning about the intimate relationship that the Dene have with the land. As Territorial Archaeologist at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre since 1990, he has formed creative partnerships with the Tłįchǫ and other Dene groups to document and interpret the archaeological record, paying particular attention to the cultural geographies and oral histories of Aboriginal cultural landscapes. His work with several Dene groups in collaborative projects related to cultural revitalization has enriched interpretation of the archaeological past in the NWT, while providing a new lens for Aboriginal partners to explore their histories. Most recently he has lead multidisciplinary climate change-related studies focused on caribou and human interactions at alpine ice patches in the Mackenzie and Selwyn Mountains, and on developing a heritage risk assessment model related to permafrost thaw slumping. Dr. Andrews holds a BSc from the University of Toronto and a PhD from the University of Dundee.

Selected Publications

Bison phylogeography constrains dispersal and viability of the Ice Free Corridor in western Canada
Heintzmana PD, D Froese, JW Ives, AEE Soares, GD Zazula, B Letts, TD Andrews, et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113:8057–8063 (Jul 2016)

Permafrost Thaw and Aboriginal Cultural Landscapes in the Gwich’in Region, Canada
Andrews TD, SV Kokelj, G MacKay, J Buysse, I Kritsch, A Andre & T Lantz
APT Bulletin Journal of Preservation Technology 47:15–22 (2016)

Preservation of viral genomes in 700-y-old caribou feces from a subarctic ice patch
Fei Fan Ng T, L-F Chen, Y Zhou, B Shapiro, M Stiller, PD Heintzman, A Varsani, et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111:16842–16847 (Nov 2014)

Ancient projectile weapons from ice patches in northwestern Canada: identification of resin and compound resin-ochre hafting adhesives
Helwig K, V Monahan, J Poulin & TD Andrews
Journal of Archaeological Science 41:655–665 (Jan 2014)

Archaeological Investigations of Alpine Ice Patches in the Selwyn Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada
Andrews TD, G MacKay & L Andrew
Arctic 65, Supplement 1: The Archaeology and Paleoecology of Alpine Ice Patches:1-21 (2012)