Dr Julian Jansen van Rensburg has directed heritage projects throughout the Middle East and Europe for over 20 years, and has worked in collaboration with numerous universities and organizations. These include National Geographic, the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage, and the World Monument Fund. He holds Board and Chair positions for leading international organizations, notably the International Association for the Study of Arabia, and the Red Sea Project. He has extensive experience in successfully managing large-scale, multi-year terrestrial and maritime archaeological survey and excavation projects. He has also lead and been involved in several tangible and intangible heritage projects to develop education and training initiatives through capacity building and building awareness. His research includes cultural heritage management, maritime trade and navigation in Antiquity and the Islamic Period, island and coastal archaeology within the Red Sea and Indian Ocean, and rock art. He has published extensively on numerous topics that include cultural heritage management and climate change, maritime archaeology and ethnography, rock art, island and coastal archaeology, and ancient DNA.