ABOUT ME
My research
My research is centred around human connections with the ocean. In 2020 I completed a multidisciplinary PhD combining humanities (archaeology) with STEM (physical oceanography), funded by the Leverhulme Trust as part of Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute’s “Understanding Maritime Futures” programme.
In my research, I used computer models of open ocean and coastal tidal circulation to explore the migration to Sahul (Australasia) by the world’s earliest seafarers, ca 65,000 years ago. As Senior Research Assistant for the ACROSS project I expanded on this work by studying the effects of monsoonal winds on this maritime migration.
Before coming to Southampton, I studied at Leiden University in the Netherlands. For more details on my education and skills, please scroll down or download my CV.
Avenue Campus, University of Southampton
My interests
I have a background in archaeology, and am fascinated by early human migrations and seafaring. I am especially interested in human adaptation and innovation in the light of environmental changes - in the past, present, and future.
I am also fascinated by the dynamic nature of the oceans, and by changes that occur in the maritime environment due to sea level fluctuations. I like how my research allowed me to explore ocean dynamics using different computational methods.
I enjoy communicating my research. I have presented at a number of international conferences, and have been involved in several outreach projects with Soco, Southampton’s coastal group.
Visiting Menai Bridge in 2018.
EDUCATION
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Human connections
Human evolution and maritime migration
Past and present human-environment interactions
Australia, Southeast Asia
2015 - 2020
University of Southampton, UK
SMMI Leverhulme Trust Doctoral Scholarship
Multidisciplinary PhD in archaeology and oceanography
Physical oceanography
Open ocean currents (the Indonesian Throughflow)
Coastal oceanography
(Deep time) tidal dynamics
Computational modelling
Lagrangian particle tracking
Coastal hydrodynamic modelling
2010 - 2014
Leiden University, NL
Research MA in archaeology (human origins, ecology)
2007 - 2010
Leiden University, NL
BA in archaeology (science based methods, Palaeolithic)
SKILLS
Languages
Dutch (native)
English (fluent, IELTS 8.5)
German (level B1)
Academic skills
Multidisciplinary research
Academic writing
Critical thinking
Data analysis
Teaching (BA, MA, workshops)
Science communication
Public speaking (conferences)
Computer skills
MATLAB
Microsoft Office
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign
EndNote
Personal skills
Empathetic
Organised
Strong work ethic
Good communication
PUBLICATIONS
Kuijjer, E.K., Haigh, I.D., Marsh, R., Farr, H., Haigh, I.D. Changing tidal dynamics and the role of the maritime environment in the colonisation of Australasia. Manuscript accepted for publication. It will be published in a special issue of the open-access journal PaleoAnthropology with the title “The impact of Upper Pleistocene climatic and environmental change on hominin occupations and landscape use”.
Kuijjer, E.K. The role of open ocean and coastal tidal currents in the maritime migration to Sahul, ca. 65,000–50,000 years ago. University of Southampton, PhD thesis.
Kuijjer, E. K., Mbye, H., Power, C., Veluplay, G., Westbury, S., 2017. Social Sustainability and Unplanned Urban Growth in the Coastal Megacity. Southampton, UK: University of Southampton.
Van Dijk, M.C., Berkholst, B.E., Brozius, B., Kuijjer, E.K., van Meel, E.B., Møller, N.H., Nielsen, T.K., Soffers, P.J.J.F., Sterner, L.J., de Veth, L., Mickleburgh, H.L., 2014. Pijpgebruik door jong en oud: sporen van pijproken bij individuen van het Sint Janskerkhof, ’s-Hertogenbosch. Westerheem 63, 12–23.
In prep.
2017
2014
2020