The WAC-8 Organising Committee have accepted a session proposal from Kenneth Aitchison of Landward Research Ltd and Katsu Okamura of Osaka City Cultural Properties Association – Discovering the Archaeologists of the World.
This session will take place during WAC-8 in Kyoto, Japan between 28th August and 2nd September 2016. It has been accepted within Theme 05 – Comparative Archaeologies in the Globalized World.
Abstract:
Employment in archaeology around the world, the challenges it faces as a profession, and how we can usefully compare professional national archaeologies as a phenomenon in the globalized world.
In 2012-14, the Discovering the Archaeologists of Europe project found that there were approximately 25,000 professional archaeologists working in 21 European countries. As well as measuring capacity, the data this project produced also enabled the exploration of sensitive economic and social issues across European archaeology, relating to skills losses and training, to the changing sizes, ages and gender balances within the profession, to the profession’s distribution between the private and public sectors, academia and cultural resource management, and also to comparing qualifications and the salaries earned by archaeologists in different countries.
More regional or national projects can and are looking at how archaeology is delivered in all parts of the world, and there is potential for these to come together to be part of a super-project, a Discovering the Archaeologists of the World that can identify and support professional archaeological practice and training globally. Papers in this session will discuss the facts about working in archaeology on national, regional and global scales.
The Call for Papers will open on 15th January 2016, but send any ideas for papers before then to Kenneth Aitchison.
