The Power of Archaeology to Change Lives - Jane Miller and Phil Richardson - ARP 2022

The Power of Archaeology to Change Lives
"We believe in Archaeology's ability to change lives and strengthen communities.
We believe in a world where everyone can benefit from the transformative power of
connection to Scotland's heritage"
It has been an interesting few years, to say the least. Yet one thing has remained the
same: the power of archaeology to change lives and strengthen our connections to our
surroundings and to each other.
For over 75 years Archaeology Scotland has supported and promoted archaeology
and heritage- from archaeological investigations and consultations, to supporting
community archaeology through Adopt-a-Monument, promoting the work of others
during Scottish Archaeology Month, celebrating field discoveries through DES, to
the work of our Learning Team with young people and educators across Scotland.
Increasingly however the work that Archaeology Scotland undertakes is specifically
aligned to broader themes around learning, training, health and well-being and
community cohesion and development. We've had to adapt and change over the years
but we have always been people focused and it is this element of our work that we
would like to highlight in this paper.
One thing that has developed during the pandemic is an appreciation of the local.
Spending time closer to home has driven a change in the ways in which heritage and
archaeology are seen and valued. These changes, together with fresh desires to get
outside and just be together, have highlighted the importance and relevance of our
approach. However, we now face a new challenge, the need to ensure that no one is
left behind as we move into a hybrid world of digital and face-face delivery. Digital and
economic inequalities were clear to see in recent years, creating additional barriers to
accessing heritage for many people. We adapted to address these issues through our
partnership working with organisations outwith the heritage sector, targeting groups
who were impacted most by these barriers.
For us, archaeology is for everyone and we will try to show how we are addressing
this in our paper. We will outline the processes behind the development and delivery
of some of our key projects, sharing thoughts and insights from the Archaeology
Scotland team. By focusing on engaging audiences in participatory archaeology and in
a range of heritage activities we will address the multiple outcomes for people, place,
communities and archaeology.
Jane Miller and Phil Richardson
Archaeology Scotland