Dr. Jo Anne Van Tilburg was honored at a banquet held during the Early Pacific Migration and Navigation Conference, which took place at Hanga Roa on Easter Island in Chile in November 2018.
With her team, Van Tilburg finished an excavation of statues located at the Rano Raraku quarry on Easter Island. Research papers focusing on her work and that of others were presented at the conference.
According to the Malibuite, this is the “third major archaelogical conference held on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) since 1983.”
Van Tilburg is also the founder of the Rapa Nui Outrigger Club and head of the Easter Island Statue Project.