6th November 2009, 12:18 PM
I can think of lots of projects where a large amount of public engagement during the fieldwork would not be suitable. It would have to be something that could be discussed on a case-by-case basis rather than universally required.
I seem to remember making this exact point and pretty much getting shouted down by everyone. It's a great idea but very difficult to sensibly implement. How do you decide what might be of interest to the public, what form does it take etc? It's a great idea but a bit of a minefield.
Why stop there though? There are probably lots of people interested in geology who would like to see boreholes being dug (is that the word?), lots of people with an interest in engineering who would like to watch roads being constructed, lots of little kids who would love to watch big diggers at work! Why just archaeology?
It has the potential to sound a bit like window dressing - make sure that the interested public get to see what's going on, without perhaps addressing more fundamental issues that affect things like the manner in which the work is done (thus ensuring good standards in some properly organised and explict way and so improving conditions for archaeologists). A lowly paid archaeologist on a 1 month contract might feel a little aggrieved to find that the client had been forced to spend a large sum of money on 'outreach' while they are rushing to get finished on time.
I seem to remember making this exact point and pretty much getting shouted down by everyone. It's a great idea but very difficult to sensibly implement. How do you decide what might be of interest to the public, what form does it take etc? It's a great idea but a bit of a minefield.
Why stop there though? There are probably lots of people interested in geology who would like to see boreholes being dug (is that the word?), lots of people with an interest in engineering who would like to watch roads being constructed, lots of little kids who would love to watch big diggers at work! Why just archaeology?
It has the potential to sound a bit like window dressing - make sure that the interested public get to see what's going on, without perhaps addressing more fundamental issues that affect things like the manner in which the work is done (thus ensuring good standards in some properly organised and explict way and so improving conditions for archaeologists). A lowly paid archaeologist on a 1 month contract might feel a little aggrieved to find that the client had been forced to spend a large sum of money on 'outreach' while they are rushing to get finished on time.