11 December 2017

Adding value - professional archaeology

This week the German journal Archäologische Informationen published a paper by Gerry Wait and I on the value of independent professional accreditation for archaeologists and cultural heritage practitioners. The journal is read by members of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ur- und Frühgeschichte e.V. (DGUF), who are interested in the ways in which CIfA has evolved to enhance the professional status of archaeologists.

This is the abstract:

There are many approaches to archaeology and cultural heritage across the world. These tend to be situated on a spectrum between total state control (the ‘national patrimony’ model) and the regulation of private actors (the ‘social licence’ model). Whichever model – or combination of models – is used, the success of any archaeological or cultural heritage programme depends on adequate resources, community and stakeholder engagement, and strong regulation and oversight. It is also essential that the archaeologists or other heritage practitioners have the necessary skills and operate in a professional framework which is independent of political or financial structures. What should such a professional framework look like, and how should it be managed? How can an independent professional framework achieve recognition from government and private-sector archaeology and cultural heritage practitioners at all levels? How can such a framework retain the respect of politicians, developers and other professions whose work impacts on archaeology and cultural heritage? What value does an independent system of accreditation add for the public?

You can read the full text here.

It is worth having a look too at the DGUF website, as well as the homepage of the Archäologische Informationen journal.

This is one of a number of international initiatives that Gerry and I are pursuing on behalf of CIfA, and hopefully there will be more news to report on these soon.

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