Meet the Curatorial Team

Many people think of the Manitoba Museum as a fantastic place to spend the day with family and friends, but behind the scenes are a talented team of curators, who are consistently adding to what we know about our long-term history, geology, ecology, and environment. The ground-breaking research conducted at the Manitoba Museum has won a place in the Guinness Book of World Records, extended the fossil records of animal groups by millions of years, explored the achievements of Indigenous Peoples and cultural communities in Manitoba, and uncovered new species. Due to this success, our curators are highly respected by other institutions as experts in their fields.

Seema Hollenberg

Seema Hollenberg

Director of Research, Collections & Exhibitions

Seema Hollenberg is the Director of Research, Collections, and Exhibitions for human and natural history research and collections. Seema’s Masters of Arts in Anthropology focused on Indigenous museum-based reconciliation,…
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Phone: (204) 988-0635

Curatorial

Dr. Amelia Fay

Dr. Amelia Fay

Curator of Anthropology & the HBC Museum Collection

Amelia Fay is Curator of Anthropology and the HBC Museum Collection at the Manitoba Museum. She received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Manitoba (2004), an MA in Archaeology…
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Phone: (204) 988-0563

Dave Finch

Dave Finch

Curator of Archaeology

Dave is an archaeologist and ethnohistorian who currently works with communities in the Canadian Subarctic. He was born in Winnipeg and was raised in northern Manitoba and northwest Ontario…
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Phone: (204) 988-0681

Dr. Diana Bizecki Robson

Dr. Diana Bizecki Robson

Curator of Botany

Dr. Bizecki Robson obtained a Master’s Degree in Plant Ecology at the University of Saskatchewan studying rare plants of the mixed grass prairies. After working as an environmental consultant and sessional lecturer…
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Phone: (204) 988-0653

Dr. Joe Moysiuk

Dr. Joe Moysiuk

Curator of Palaeontology & Geology

Joe Moysiuk recently completed his doctoral dissertation at the University of Toronto and Royal Ontario Museum. His expertise centers on the oldest animal fossils and insights they provide about the evolution…
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Phone: (204) 988-0648

Dr. Randall Mooi

Dr. Randall Mooi

Curator of Zoology

Dr. Mooi received his Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Toronto working on the evolutionary history of coral reef fishes. Following a postdoctoral fellowship in the Division of Fishes of the Smithsonian Institution…
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Phone: (204) 988-0659

Dr. Roland Sawatzky

Dr. Roland Sawatzky

Curator of History

Roland Sawatzky joined The Manitoba Museum in 2011. He received his B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Winnipeg, M.A. in Anthropology from the University of South Carolina, and Ph.D. in Archaeology…
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Phone: (204) 988-0634

Conservation

Carolyn Sirett

Carolyn Sirett

Senior Conservator

Carolyn Sirett received her B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Manitoba, Diploma in Cultural Resource Management from the University of Victoria, and Diploma in Collections Conservation and Management…
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Phone: (204) 988-0567

Estelle Girard

Estelle Girard

Assistant Conservator

Estelle Girard holds a B.A. in History as well as a certificate in Art History from Université Laval, and a Masters degree in Conservation Practice from Cardiff University. Estelle’s main duties as Assistant Conservator…
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Phone: (204) 988-0694

Collections

Nancy Anderson

Nancy Anderson

Collections Management Specialist – Human History

Nancy Anderson holds a B.A. (Hons) in History from the University of Winnipeg, and received her M.A. in Canadian Social History jointly from the University of Winnipeg and University of Manitoba. She has over 30 years experience…
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Phone: (204) 988-0607

Dr. Brigit Tronrud

Dr. Brigit Tronrud

Collections Management Specialist – Natural History

Dr. Brigit Tronrud earned her D.Phil in Earth Sciences from the University of Oxford (2022) specializing in paleontology and zoology, following her B.Sc. from the University of Chicago (2017). Her doctoral research focussed…
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Phone: (204) 988-0620

Cortney Pachet

Cortney Pachet

Collections Technician – Human History

Cortney Pachet started working at the Manitoba Museum in 2001 as a tour guide while earning her a BA (Honours) from the University of Winnipeg. She quickly realized that she wanted a career in museums…
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Phone: (204) 988-0646

Aro van Dyck

Aro van Dyck

Collections Technician – Natural History

Aro van Dyck earned her B.Sc. from the University of Manitoba, majoring in Biological Sciences and minoring in Entomology. She has also researched the diversity of wasps and bees Winnipeg’s greenspaces…
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Phone: (204) 988-0654