Daniela Balanzátegui is an assistant professor in the area of historical and collaborative archaeology of the African Diaspora in Latin America. Her research is mainly focused on Afro-Ecuadorian historical strategies to survive slavery, structural racism, and gender discrimination. Her investigation is based on the examination of material culture, ancestral territories, historical narratives, and oral traditions of Afro-descendant populations. Since 2012, She has developed a community-based archaeological project in collaboration with Afro-Ecuadorian communities from a feminist standing point of view. The project provides a space for ethical and respectful work in heritage management, public and community archaeology. She obtained her doctoral and master’s degrees from the Department of Archaeology at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby-Canada.