Per Ditlef Fredriksen is a Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Archaeology, Conservation and History, University of Oslo. His primary research foci are contemporary archaeology and studies of historical ecology in southern Africa. He has conducted research in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa, in addition to Scandinavia. Guided by a deep interest in the relationship between archaeology and anthropology, his work on contemporary rural communities in southern Africa extends into critical heritage studies and issues of local engagement in archaeological research. Central research themes include challenges related to relocation in local communities, encounters between knowledge systems and world views, the introduction of new technology and changes over time, the production and organisation of local ceramic crafts, studies of households and issues of analytical scale, thing theory and how the material world is engaged in ancestor relations, and notions of heritage in stakeholder communities.