Cathy Ngọc Hân Tran (she/her) is a doctoral candidate and Vanier Scholar in the Archaeology Department at Simon Fraser University. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Forensic Anthropology from the University of Toronto.
Born to an immigrant mother and refugee father in Tkaronto, Cathy’s life journey is built upon the legacy of her fractured Vietnamese community, whom she carries into her work. Drawing from the legacy of the war in Vietnam, she aims to support victim identification efforts through her research, which explores the recovery of human DNA from grave sediments as a non-destructive and culturally respectful method for victim identification.
Cathy aims to contribute her skills and knowledge to support community-led initiatives and building of local capacity. She is dedicated to empowering communities by organizing community members to make meaningful impact. Through the Trudeau Foundation Leadership program, Cathy aims to explore creative avenues for change to build toward a vision for the people, by the people.
