Empowering Communities Through Archaeology And Heritage

"Peter G. Gould seeks to identify the essential success factors associated with a growing practice in archaeology: the sponsorship by archaeologists or heritage managers of local projects such as museums, tourism businesses, crafts cooperatives and similar activities within communities adjacent to archaeological or heritage sites. Typically, these are small projects intended to support economic advance in small communities. Rarely are they reported on in scholarly papers and, until now, they have never been subjected to study grounded in economic theory and practice. This is an area of study and analysis that is too important to lack suitable academic attention. This book argues that an essential factor in the success of community projects relates to the mechanisms used to govern the projects at the local level, and provides a much-needed systematical evaluation of the issues surrounding such governance. Drawing together theoretical insights from economics, political science, tourism scholarship, complexity scholarship, and non-profit best practices, it presents a model for community governance structures and illustrates the workings of that model through the four case studies. Armed with this book, practitioners will have both a theoretical foundation and practical approaches to consider when designing community projects"--

Peter G. Gould seeks to identify the success factors associated with economic development projects within communities adjacent to archaeological or heritage sites, a growing interest among archaeologists and heritage managers. Typically, the success of site museums, tourism businesses, or crafts cooperatives is rarely reported on in scholarly literature or subjected to systematic study. This book addresses that gap. Gould argues that the success of community projects is inextricably linked to the mechanisms community members use to govern their project activities, and provides a much-needed assessment of the issues relating to community governance. Drawing together insights from economic analysis, political science, tourism scholarship, complexity scholarship, and the governance of non-profit enterprises, Gould suggests a model for community governance and illustrates the workings of that model through four case studies. Armed with this book's theoretical foundation, heritage professionals will have practical approaches to consider when designing community economic development projects.

The volume introduces a diverse range of themes and practices relating to sustainable heritage management. Each paper delves into the challenges, successes, and failures of preserving precious cultural heritage. It discusses various strategies, such as the early inclusion of archaeology in UNESCO frameworks to leveraging archaeological findings and indigenous knowledge for sustainable development goals. The chapters explore the evolution of autoarchaeology as a tool for empowering Indigenous communities to assert their human rights and integrating oral histories and local ecological knowledge to interpret ancient remains. Additionally, it highlights the value of archaeologists working more closely with Indigenous peoples, local communities, and other disciplines in identifying, preserving, conserving and managing heritage sites. It appeals to archaeologists, anthropologists, cultural geographers, cultural heritage professionals and others seeking new ways to protect cultural heritage.

"Peter G. Gould seeks to identify the essential success factors associated with a growing practice in archaeology: the sponsorship by archaeologists or heritage managers of local projects such as museums, tourism businesses, crafts cooperatives and similar activities within communities adjacent to archaeological or heritage sites. Typically, these are small projects intended to support economic advance in small communities. Rarely are they reported on in scholarly papers and, until now, they have never been subjected to study grounded in economic theory and practice. This is an area of study and analysis that is too important to lack suitable academic attention. This book argues that an essential factor in the success of community projects relates to the mechanisms used to govern the projects at the local level, and provides a much-needed systematical evaluation of the issues surrounding such governance. Drawing together theoretical insights from economics, political science, tourism scholarship, complexity scholarship, and non-profit best practices, it presents a model for community governance structures and illustrates the workings of that model through the four case studies. Armed with this book, practitioners will have both a theoretical foundation and practical approaches to consider when designing community projects"--

This book presents an innovative approach to public archaeology in a rural community, which has had powerful results in terms of empowering a village community in Crete to become long-term guardians of their cultural heritage. Highlighting the theoretical and local contexts of the Philioremos Peak Sanctuary Public Archeology Project, this book explores the methodology and the project outcomes, and assesses best practice in the field of public archaeology within a rural community. As well as expanding the research on Minoan peak sanctuaries, the volume contributes to a greater understanding of how rural communities can be successfully engaged in the management of heritage, and is relevant to archaeologists and other heritage professionals wishing to understand the latest developments in public archaeology.

Recent years have witnessed a rapid increase in the fields of cultural heritage studies and community archaeology worldwide with expanding discussions about the mechanisms and consequences of community participation. This trend has brought to the forefront debates about who owns the past, who has knowledge, and how heritage values can be shared more effectively with communities who then ascribe meaning and value to heritage materials. Globalization forces have created a need for contextualizing knowledge to address complex issues and collaboration across and beyond academic disciplines, using more integrated methodologies that include the participation of non-academics and increased stakeholder involvement. Successful programs provide power sharing mechanisms and motivation that effect more active involvement by lay persons in archaeological fieldwork as well as interpretation and information dissemination processes. With the contents of this volume, we envision community archaeology to go beyond descriptions of outreach and public engagement to more critical and reflexive actions and thinking. The volume is presented in the context of the evolution of cultural heritage studies from the 20th century “expert approach” to the 21st century “people-centered approach,” with public participation and community involvement at all phases of the decision-making process. The volume contains contributions of 28 chapters and 59 authors, covering an extensive geographical range, including Africa, South America, Central America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, and Australasia. Chapters provide exemplary cases in a growing lexicon of public archaeology where power is shared within frameworks of voluntary activism in a wide diversity of cooperative settings and stakeholder interactions.

This book traces the development of 'community archaeology', identifying both its advantages and disadvantages by describing how and why tensions have arisen between archaeological and community understandings of the past. The focus of this book is the conceptual disjunction between heritage and data and the problems this poses for both archaeologists and communities in communicating and engaging with each other. In order to explain the extent of the miscommunication that can occur, the authors examine the ways in which a range of community groups, including communities of expertise, define and negotiate memory and identity. Importantly, they explore the ways in which these expressions are used, or are taken up, in struggles over cultural recognition - and ultimately, the practical, ethical, political and theoretical implications this has for archaeologists engaging in community work. Finally, they argue that there are very real advantages for archaeological research, theory and practice to be gained from engaging with communities.

Communities and Cultural Heritage explores the relationship between communities, their cultural heritage and the global forces that control most of the world’s wealth and resources in today’s world. Bringing together scholars and heritage practitioners from nine countries, this book contributes to the ongoing dialogue on community heritage by analysing impediments to full community participation. The underminin of local communities comes at a high price. As the chapters in this book demonstrate, the knowledge embedded within traditional and Indigenous heritage creates communities that are more resilient to environmental and social stressors and more responsive to contemporary challenges such as climate change, environmental degradation, post-disaster recovery and relocation. Cultural heritage practices often fail to capitalise upon local knowledge and traditional skills and undervalue the potential contribution of local communities in finding creative and resourceful solutions to the issues they are confronting. Arguing that the creation of successful community heritage project requires ongoing reflection on the aims, methods, financing and acceptable outcomes of projects, the volume also demonstrates that the decolonization of Western-focussed heritage practices is an ongoing process, by which subaltern groups are brought forward and given a space in the heritage narrative. Reflecting on trends that impact communities and heritage sites across different geographical regions, Communities and Cultural Heritage will be of interest to academics, students and practitioners of cultural heritage,archaeology and anthropology around the world.