Archaeology and the global economic crisis. Multiple impacts, possible solutions (ed. Nathan Schlanger and Kenneth Aitchison)

Abstract

The texts presented here are extended and updated versions of the papers given
\nat a session entitled “Archaeology and the global crisis - multiple impacts, possible
\nsolutions”, held on the 17th September 2009 at the 15th annual meeting of
\nthe European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) in Riva del Garda, Italy. As coorganisers
\nof this session, we were particularly happy to see that over a hundred
\ncolleagues attended and took part in some lively discussions, where sober realism
\nwas mixed with hope and determination. The session furthermore benefitted from
\nthe friendly atmosphere and excellent organisation of the EAA meeting itself, as
\nskilfully orchestrated by Franco Nicolis together with Martina Dalla Riva, their
\nteams and sponsors.
\nIndeed the European Association of Archaeologists as a whole, so we feel, has
\namply fulfilled its vocation as meeting-ground and think-tank for professional
\narchaeologists from Europe and beyond (http://www.e-a-a.org). We are grateful
\nin any case that our session at Riva del Garda was sponsored – in an intellectual
\nsense – by three EAA committees or working parties. One is the “Committee on
\narchaeological legislation and organisation in Europe”, chaired by Christopher
\nYoung and Jean-Paul Demoule: the crisis and the structural changes that follow
\nmake the critical and comparative work of this committee more important than
\never before. Further support was received from the “Committee on professional
\nassociations in archaeology”, chaired by Kenneth Aitchison, a committee that is
\nacutely concerned with working practices in European archaeology and how they
\nare being affected by the economic situation. The third and most recently created
\nof these EAA groups is the working party on “ACE - Archaeology in contemporary
\nEurope: professional practices and public outreach” (www.ace-archaeology.
\neu) – a European Commission ‘Culture’ programme funded network gathering
\na dozen of partners from across the continent to examine together the fields of
\npractice and social dimensions of contemporary archaeology. In addition to the
\ninvaluable material support provided by the ACE network, many of its partners
\ncontributed their comments and insights to the preparation of the ‘Crisis’ session,
\nand also through subsequent meetings in Thessaloniki (with our Aristotle
\nUniversity partner) and in Budapest (with our KÖH partner). In this volume, ACE
\npartners have contributed the chapters on the situations in the Netherlands, Spain,
\nFrance and Poland. Another relevant European initiative is the “Discovering the
\nArchaeologists of Europe” project (www.discovering-archaeologists.eu), a review
\nof the archaeological labour market in twelve European Union states with the support
\nof the European Commission ‘Leonardo da Vinci’ programme in 2006-2008.
\nAs data for the project were collected in 2007, at the height of the economic cycle,
\nthey give us very valuable information and insights for critical comparisons with
\nthe ongoing crisis situation.