James Keppeler is currently a PhD Candidate in the University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology exploring debates on the origin of agriculture in the Philippines, as well as applications of digital archaeology. James is excavating in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, exploring the timing and origin of agriculture in that region. In digital archaeology, James has worked in the application of 3D digitization methods in archaeological research and cultural heritage preservation as well as application of these in cultural heritage education.

James completed his BA in Classics from the University of Minnesota in 2018, where he studied the effects of cultural creolization in the Roman province of Dacia. For his Master of Science degree in Archaeological Science at the University of Tübingen, James conducted a geometric morphometric analysis on a number of mummified heads from ancient Egypt in order to test for biological continuity at the site of Gebel Abusir.