Making Archaeology pay

[BAJR]

At the recent World Archaeology Conference I was able to participate in discussions about making Archaeology pay... in effect - creating economic sustainability models for archaeology

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[TD="class: whitebg topline_printonly, align: left"]Session 5.1H: Forum: Archaeology as economic development: review and response
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Session Chair: Amanda Kate Forster, Institute for Archaeologists
Session Chair: Peter G Gould, University College London
Session Chair: Roger White, University of Birmingham
Session Chair: Caitlin D MacLean, Milken Institute
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[TD="class: listheader, align: left"] Session Abstract
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[TD="class: topline_printonly, align: left"] This forum offers a review of, and a response to, the theme title Archaeology as economic development: community engagement and grassroots movements. The session organisers proposed the theme with a desire to discuss archaeology in terms of its contribution to economic development, aiming to highlight efforts being made by archaeologists to improve conditions among the peoples and communities in which they work. Over the course of the conference, we will have heard from archaeologists working across the globe, who operate within different legislative frameworks, using different types of funding and interacting with heritage and communities in very different ways. This session will facilitate a review of what we have learnt from one another. It presents an opportunity to discuss collectively our common issues and problems and will build on the foundations set by theme participants throughout the conference. In short, we ask; what we have learnt about archaeology and economic development? And, what should we do now?


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It is/was clear that archaeology is a difficult beast to pin down, both in terms of "product" and in "type" Should we simplify the diversity or see it as a strength? Does the need for a template and toolkit and if so, how can this work at a national and international level. Should we be assigning specific economic duties to professionals in that field?

Academic/Research Archaeology
Public Archaeology
Contract Archaeology

Pushing for economic and social benefits... talking the language of politicians and public to create a relevance for our work.

[h=4]Putting the Past to Work: Archaeology, Community Institutions, and Economic Development[/h] Archaeology today is a dialog about the meaning of the past to contemporary society, about the presentation of the past to audiences today, and increasingly about the very tangible value of the past to enhancing the lives and livelihoods of communities that are affected by archaeological research and heritage tourism. I am interested in the potential of archaeological and heritage sites to serve as catalysts for the economic development of the communities in which they lie. In a developing world impacted by globalization, archaeological and heritage resources often are the most substantial “assets” of spiritual or economic value remaining to impoverished communities. In other regions, those resources are often exploited for national gain at the expense of local residents. Archaeologists and specialists in heritage are positioned to impact local communities in important and positive ways even as they pursue more narrow academic inquiries. The motivating question for me is how best to realize this potential. Archaeologists regularly sponsor projects that support local communities, both culturally and economically. Examples include field museums, craft ventures, and tourist experiences of various stripes, each of which often is created in the hope that the local community will not only support but manage the venture. The objective of my research is to understand why some community-managed projects survive and prosper for many years while others fail. My expectation is that, if they are to survive for more than a few years, projects will tend to exhibit similar high-level patterns of organization that enable communities to resolve economic, social and political conflicts in order to achieve mutually-beneficial ends. The theoretical underpinnings for this research are found in studies of institutional effectiveness and organization drawn from the disciplines of economics and political science, particularly the study of common pool resources. A practical result of this research should be a better understanding for archaeologists and heritage professionals of how to go about sponsoring community projects.
Peter G Gould, University College London

[BAJR]

Archaeology and Economic Development 2012

AED2012 was filmed in its entirety, including all discussions, to act as a resource for delegates and researchers in the future.

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/aed2012/confvideo

here is a sample:

the start:
[video=youtube;VVdQrfnP0cY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=VVdQrfnP0cY[/video]