Bermuda's cultural heritage has a new protector in the form of a Folklore Officer for the Department of Cultural Affairs.

Since September 26, Kim Dismount Robinson, has been conducting research into the culture and history of Bermuda as Government's newest civil servant.

A Government release said she would be kept busy recording and ensuring the authenticity of material pertaining to Bermudian folklore, stories, oral history, traditions, customs and rituals.

Specifically, she must conduct projects on aspects of Bermudian and International culture, including Bermudian and Caribbean culture and Bermudian and UK culture.

Dr. Dismont Robinson ? who completed her Doctorate of Philosophy at the English department of the University of Miami in August, 2003 ? will also have to organise and catalogue such cultural materials onto a database to preserve it for the future.

She must also provide advice on future research projects to members of the public, prepare material for publications and library records, as well as prepare research material for exhibits, presentations, lectures and seminars.

Dr. Dismont Robinson's doctoral thesis focused on the relationship between literature, island communities, and the psychological effects of a violent history.

Dr. Dismont Robinson has also been the recipient of several honours and awards including the five-year McKnight Doctoral Fellowship, the 2002 Bermuda Historical Society Award, and the Bermuda Arts Council Grant in both 1999 and 2002.

She interned at the Bermuda Maritime Museum during the summer of 2001, collecting materials from Bermudian war veterans, it said.

And in 2002, after being awarded the Centre for Latin American Studies Doctoral Research Grant, she had the opportunity to collect material in Guyana from a survivor of the 1978 Jonestown tragedy.

While pursuing her education, Dr. Dismont Robinson worked as a freelance journalist for more than ten years. She has written for and The Bermuda Times newspapers as well as The Bermudian,rg Magazine and Salt newspaper, it said.

Since completing her doctoral studies in 2003, Dr. Dismont Robinson has worked as an assistant professor of English at the University of the Virgin Islands in St. Croix.

Prior to completing her doctorate, she spent a semester teaching English at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida as well as St. Mark's School in Lim?n, Costa Rica.

However, Dr. Dismont Robinson seems to have left her travelling days behind to remain in Bermuda with her family, including her courageous mother Diane Dismont who suffers from a rare form of blood cancer.