Site Director

Jaime Awe is presently a Professor of Anthropology at Northern Arizona University, Emeritus Director of the Belize Institute of Archaeology, and founding Director of the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project. He received his BA and MA Degrees in Anthropology at Trent University in Ontario, Canada, and his Ph.D. from the Institute of Archaeology at the University of London. After receiving his Ph.D., Dr. Awe taught in the Anthropology Department of Trent University in Canada, then at the Universities of New Hampshire, Galen, and Montana (Spring 2011). Between 2003 – 2014, he served as the first Director of the Belize Institute of Archaeology where he was responsible for managing the archaeological heritage of the country. During his extensive career in archaeology, he has conducted important research and conservation at most of the major archaeological sites in Belize, he has published numerous articles in various books, journals, and magazines, and his research has been featured in several national and international television documentaries. For many years, Dr. Awe also led the Government of Belize’s archaeology outreach and education programs, writing books such as 101 Questions and Answers about the Ancient Maya of Belize and Maya Cities and Sacred Caves: A Guide to the Maya Sites of Belize. In recognition of his many accomplishments, he has received several prestigious awards, including the 2022 Society for American Archaeology Award for Excellence in Latin American & Caribbean Archaeology, the 2020 Phi Kappa Phi Faculty Scholar at Northern Arizona University, the 2019 Belize Person of the Year, a 2017 Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Field Discovery Award, and a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016 from the American Foreign Academic Research for his significant contributions to the development of Belizean Archaeology. Dr. Awe continues his active program of research and conservation in Belize, conducting multi-disciplinary investigations with his colleagues and graduate students at the major Maya cities of Cahal Pech, Baking Pot, Xunantunich, and Lower Dover.