Internship (Archaeology and Anthropology)

Organization profile

Every year, millions of people around the world go missing as a result of conflict, human rights abuses, disasters, organized crime, irregular migration, and other causes. This is a complex global challenge that can be tackled effectively through cross-cutting programs that address a variety of difficult, interconnected issues.

The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) is the only international organization tasked exclusively to work on the issue of missing persons. It works with governments and other stakeholders, including families of the missing, to help them develop and maintain successful missing persons processes. To learn more about ICMP click here.

Western Balkans Program

In the Western Balkans, ICMP has supported regional cooperation in the search for the missing; it has worked effectively to foster the development and cooperation of civil society organizations with one another and with governments and local authorities in the region. It has pioneered the application of state-of-the-art DNA and advanced database informatics to locate and identify large numbers of missing persons. To date, more than 70 percent of the estimated 40,000 persons reported missing at the end of the fighting in the Western Balkans have been accounted for. ICMP’s Western Balkans Program continues to provide assistance to countries in the region to account for approximately 12,000 persons who are still missing from the conflict in the 1990s.

Position Background

The selected Intern will experience and practice forensic archaeological principles – recovery and documenting techniques, as well as forensic anthropological principles – examination and analysis, as implemented within the ICMP’s Western Balkans Program in BIH. This workload is part of ICMP’s regular technical assistance to local authorities in the missing persons process, and therefore the Intern will have the opportunity to learn about and directly contribute to the global efforts to account for missing persons around the world.

This is a six month unpaid internship. Actual hours per week can vary depending on availability of the selected intern.

Implementation subject to Covid restrictions and work-from-home mandates.

Position Description

Under the overall guidance and supervision of the WB Forensic Coordinator, the AAD Intern duties and responsibilities will include, but will not necessarily be limited to, the following:

• Study, be mentored on, observe, and practice archaeological and anthropological best practice as implemented by the AAD team within the WB Program.
• Observe and participate in provision of technical assistance to designated authorities.
• Study and practice case documentation and case management procedures and protocols, which includes use of IDMS Field Operations and Examination Modules.
• Learn about, and participate in, team work, as well as remote team work and coordination of activities within the AAD team.