Vibeke Vandrup Martens

Vibeke Vandrup Martens is an archaeologist and a researcher (Forsker II) and has worked at NIKU since 2006, originally at the Environmental monitoring Department, subsequently at the Archaeology Department.

Her research focuses on climate change impacts on archaeological preservation, environmental archaeology, geoarchaeology, and in situ preservation.

Her present work focus is on a long-term environmental monitoring programme to ensure long time-series on environmental conditions for the Norwegian medieval towns, MOV BY; she works with impacts of climate change on preservation conditions for cultural heritage, and participates in the interdisciplinary research project ‘Future Past’ led by the Archaeological Museum at the University of Stavanger. She is the co-founder of the EAA Community for Climate Change and Heritage (CCH) and a committee member of Climate Change Strategies and Archaeological Resources (CCSAR) within the Society for American Archaeology (SAA).

She has led the interdisciplinary research project CULTCOAST (financed by the MILJØFORSK environmental research programme at the Research Council of Norway) and previously worked in the research projects “Archaeological Deposits in a Changing Climate. In Situ Preservation of Farm Mounds in Northern Norway” (InSituFarms), Cultural Heritage and Water Management in Urban Planning’ (UrbanWATCH), and “In Situ Site Preservation of Archaeological Remains in the Unsaturated Zone” (In Situ SIS). Martens carries out environmental monitoring projects both within and outside the urban areas on archaeological sites from all periods.

Martens has published papers on global challenges, climate change adaptation, deposit monitoring, green transition and archaeology, rural medieval settlements, and on medieval pottery. She holds a position in the editorial board of Collegium Medievale, and she is an active participant at international archaeological conferences globally.

Martens has a PhD in geoarchaeology from the VU University of Amsterdam (NL) and a background in medieval archaeology from the University of Lund (SE) and Aarhus University (DK). Her work experience as an archaeologist, curator and researcher comes from the Museum of Cultural History in Lund (SE), the Copenhagen City Museum (DK), the Government of Åland (FI), the Museum of Cultural History at the University of Oslo, and Vestfold County Archaeology (NO).