TORCHBEARERS
TAMARA PAVLOVIĆ / DIRECTOR
An archaeologist who found a safe haven in the laboratory environment at the Faculty of Medicine. As a researcher, she is engaged in bioanthropology, studying ancient human bones and biographies of missing populations, as part of her doctoral studies. When she is not in the basement or out in the field, she passes on her passion for science to the public, popularizing archaeology through various Festivals of Science and archaeology schools for students. As an associate and manager of the archaeology seminar at Petnica Science Center, together with a team of associates, she has designed archaeological projects, lectures and workshops for high school students from Serbia and the region. In the rare moments of boredom, she cooks or takes her trusty camera and photographs the Balkans.
MARIJA KREČKOVIĆ GAVRILOVIĆ / BOARD PRESIDENT
A doctoral student at the Faculty of Philosophy. She boosts her love of prehistory with physical anthropology and analysis of human skeletal remains. She is most interested in the people’s health (and their teeth) in the Bronze Age of Banat. Marija worked as a PR, and later as president of the Youth Initiative "I want! I can!". There she experienced volunteerism, popularization of science and activism and fell in love at first sight. You will most often find her in search of funding, arranging appearances in the media, correcting spelling mistakes in posts and waging the war on bureaucracy. In her free time, she reads fantasy books, sings in the choir and concocts new muffin recipes.
DIMITRIJE MARKOVIĆ / BOARD MEMBER
A PhD student of archaeology at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade. As a researcher of the Laboratory of Bioarchaeology, he studies animal remains from Roman sites in Serbia. Between 2010 and 2021 he has gone from participant, to an associate, to a co-manager at the Archaeology Program in Petnica SC. After organizing numerous archaeological workshops at different science festivals, he decided to found Neozoik with a well-known team and jump feet first into the abyss by the name of "promotion of archaeology and cultural heritage". Lately, he has been trying to connect archaeology and film with the hope of one day being invited to edit the program "My Choice" in Yugoslav Film Archive.
MILAN MARKOVIĆ / BOARD MEMBER
After completing his undergraduate studies of archaeology in Belgrade, he continued his formal education with master's studies in Lisbon and Rome. There he acquired specialized knowledge and skills in the field of physical and chemical analysis of archaeological remains. Currently, as a PhD candidate and Marie Curie Fellow at the University of Avignon, he spends his time studying animal mummies, trying to figure out how the ancient Egyptians made them. In the rare moments of free time, he likes reading a good SF novel, as well as getting completely lost playing video games, even though he is already deep in the third decade of his life.
TEODORA RADIŠIĆ / BOARD MEMBER
One of those who think that there are no boring topics in archaeology. After medieval bombs and Roman gods, she became interested in animal bones, and now, in addition to knowing what people used to like to eat in the past, she also knows whether the cook made soup using an old hen. She also knows pre-Roman fashion, and she passes on her knowledge to students of archaeology at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade. Since she thinks the love for science starts in childhood, she has joined the Neozoik Foundation, in order to bring children closer to the magic of archaeology. In her free time, she feeds and watches birds.
MARKO JANKOVIĆ / BOARD MEMBER
When he is not reading comic books or epic fantasy, he teaches students how archaeologists study the past. Being a great foody, he dabbles in Roman cuisine, but also in other ways in which the Romans spent their free time. He has been excavating a Roman necropolis for years, mostly making sure Tamara, alongside other members of Neozoik, have enough work to do. Throughout his career, he has been promoting archaeology through workshops for young people and writing texts in popular science magazines, intended for the general public. A certain Lenka helps him in his work the most.
NEVENA PANTIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
Archaeology student, former ballerina and ice-skater. She found her love for archaeology as a student at Petnica SC, and continued to nurture it through her studies of archaeology and work with the Neozoik Foundation. Prefers grave digging instead of going to the seaside in the summer. She tries to bring archaeology closer to the general public by editing the content of Neozoik Instagram pages. For the same purposes, she organized an archaeological workshop for the Night of the Researchers and participated in the creation of an archaeological exhibition for the Science Festival.
DANICA GRUJIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A grad student of archaeology who studies archaeozoology at the Laboratory for Bioarchaeology at the Faculty of Philosophy. In her Master's studies, she is looking into the domestication of animals in the past, as well as the oldest agricultural communities in Vojvodina. Outside of the lab, she creates fun content for the Foundation's Instagram profile. In her free time, she trains aikido, watches movies and cooks. In summer, you can often find her on the Zemun quay.
PREDRAG ĐERKOVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A student of archaeology with a desire to combine the study of the past with digital technologies. He is interested in the archaeology of landscapes and is studying the patterns of places people choose to settle. Sometimes a piece of a broken glass or some Roman coins catch his attention. He fell in love with archaeology in Petnica SC in his teens, today he is honing his skills producing the Archaeological Journal. His dream is to write his own "Hitchhiker's Guide to Archaeology". He might grow up to be an archaeologist, or he might not. Definitely a bigger Eurovision Song Contest fan than Nemanja.
ANASTASIJA BRANČIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A third-year student of archaeology, with a keen interest in physical anthropology, the application of natural sciences in archaeology, and various ways of digitizing data. She is better known as "Staša", and after attending Petnica SC, she has continued to share her enthusiasm and experiences through Neozoik's social media platforms, especially on TikTok! She likes working in a team, meeting new people, reading and philosophizing on various topics. A day without jokes, pranks and music is a wasted one in her book. In her free time she does fieldwork, and when she is not digging - she is traveling, writing, playing the piano or singing.
JOVANA PETROVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A student of archaeology and part of the Neozoik TikTok crew. She was an associate at the seminar of archaeology in Petnica SC. She has volunteered at many festivals and events, both artistic and dealing with human rights. In addition to volunteering, she loves travelling, and her dream is to tour India all the way to Nepal. Until then, she listens to Talking Heads on vinyl and paints.
MAŠA BOGOJEVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A third-year archaeology student with a special interest in broken pottery that’s been around for a couple of centuries or millennia. At first, only her family and friends had to listen to her talking about archaeology, but now she has a much larger audience on TikTok. When she is not prattling on, she enjoys food or sleep, watches movies on the big screen or roams around Zemun with headphones in her ears (however, she will gladly regale you with Zemun-is-awesome stories if you approach her).
NEMANJA PAVLOVIC / TEAM MEMBER
A third-year student of archaeology from Blace. In addition to his great love for digging, he is interested in examining ancient plant remains. His interest in the popularization of archaeology, which began to develop in Petnica SC, is now expressed through his Instagram activities. He is also involved in activism at the Belgrade Pride Info Center. In his free time, he bugs the students at his dorm with his singing and guitar playing, and his family members with his piano playing. He wishes to travel more. He is a way bigger Eurovision Song Contest fan than Pedja.
ANASTASIJA STOJANOVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
This third-year archaeology student fell in love with relics and stories of the past as a child, by learning and singing traditional folk songs. Her charm shines through on the theatre stage, and recently on Neozoik's TikTok. She loves hanging out with friends and teamwork, so archaeology, in all of its forms, proved to be a great fit. She adores excavating medieval sites.
IMAN FETAHOVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A freshman who discovered her love for archaeology at Petnica SC and now spends her free time working on popularizing science together with her friends at the Neozoik Foundation. In high school, she often volunteered and attended various seminars through the Youth Center in Novi Pazar. She spends her winters skiing on the trails of Kopaonik. Travelling and Assassin's Creed are her two biggest loves in the whole world.
MILA MITROVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
A freshman at the Faculty of Architecture, who, after having experienced the archeology seminars in Petnica SC, chose a slightly different direction, despite great interest in this field. She is interested in photography, model making, traveling and museum tours. In addition to tasks and projects related to the faculty, she is helping the Instagram team in arranging the page. She is most interested in the history of architecture and conservation, and she really likes going to the field with fellow archaeologists!
TIJANA RADOVANOVIĆ / TEAM MEMBER
After completing her bachelor's and master's studies at the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade and after many years of engagement in the Design seminars at Petnica SC - she decides to continue her work in the field of graphic design. In addition to her current full-time job in the gaming industry, she is a member of a multidisciplinary design duo called jednina, where she works on various projects in the field of publishing, art and activism. She helps the Neozoik team's current projects to be adequately visually shaped. :) In addition to graphic design, she is interested in the topics of cultural heritage, village renewal and sustainable development, which encouraged her to be actively involved in the initiative for the renewal of Stara Planina villages - Stara kao Nova, as well as the Neozoik Foundation.