Dr. Barnes is a cultural anthropologist with a background in bioarchaeology. Between 2016-2022 she assisted the Slovenian government’s transitional justice project, helmed by the Commission on Concealed Mass Graves; she has worked on human remains recovery efforts in Slovenia, Croatia, and the United States.

As a Program Officer at the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, she has designed qualitative research protocol, conducted ethnographic work, and both assisted and led teams in the writing of grant proposals. With her background in bioarchaeology, she has designed programming for countries undergoing government-led peace processes in both judicial and forensic capacities, with a focus on Latin America.