“Listening to Whom and for Whose Benefit?”

Abstract

The values that descendant communities place on heritage objects and places have historically been eclipsed by science-oriented approaches to the archaeological record. However, local knowledge is vital to making decisions about the protection or use of tangible or intangible heritage, and knowledge derived from it. Learning to listen must thus be a part of the archaeologist’s tool kit. In this chapter, I describe the value of what can be learned from Indigenous community members (Community-based participatory research), as well as how ethnoarchaeological studies contribute to a fuller understanding of heritage, directly benefit community needs and interests, and make substantial contributions to archaeology and heritage preservation. I focus on community-directed projects funded by the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage (IPinCH) project. These initiatives directly benefit community needs and interests, while also making substantial contributions to archaeology and heritage preservation.