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Sustainable Futures for Archaeology

Overview

  • Credit value: 30 credits at Level 6
  • Convenor: Dr Lesley McFadyen
  • Tutors: Claire Harris, Sadie Watson
  • Assessment: a 1000-word project (50%) and 3000-word research essay (50%)

Module description

How can archaeology contribute towards more sustainable futures, in the discipline and beyond? This module, co-created by the Carena Institute of Sustainable Archaeologies at Birkbeck and MOLA (Museum of London Archaeology), aims to answer this question, and to provide a roadmap towards a more equitable, inclusive, community-centred and eco-conscious archaeology. It will lead you through the current challenges faced by the discipline, introducing case studies from around the world that showcase the breadth of potential offered by these approaches. We will acknowledge the value in listening to local and Indigenous communities when considering archaeology in all its forms. We weave in contemporary politics, cultural and natural landscapes, and urban design, drawing on our own practice to provide exemplar projects, and take a more-than-human approach to our thinking that decentres our voices to create sustainable futures with archaeology at their core. We aim to build community in this class, which will foster peer-to-peer learning and increase student agency within a supportive and open learning environment.

Indicative syllabus

  • Introduction
  • Community‑centred heritage practices
  • Archives and legacy data
  • Heritage in conflict and post‑conflict contexts
  • Ecology, landscape and more‑than‑human worlds
  • Archaeology’s role in shaping the future
  • Digital tools in community archaeology
  • Decolonising archaeology and heritage
  • Public communication and engagement
  • Speculative futures for archaeology
  • Field trip - London (Thames walk)

Learning objectives

By the end of this module, you will have:

  • a deep familiarity with current conceptual challenges facing the discipline, illustrated through carefully selected case studies
  • a critical knowledge of the complexity of the archaeological resource, its multifaceted links with the natural environment and how to maximise the potential of this relationship
  • experience in collective and collaborative working through methodological techniques intended to encourage shared and sustainable work practice
  • an understanding of the importance of adopting current critical paradigms to challenge disciplinary traditions, gain a grounding in methods of enquiry, and be provided with tools to build a new people- and planet-focused practice.