Public Opinion and Archaeological Heritage: Views from Outside the Profession.

This article \“focused on five main areas: knowledge of archaeology, interest and participation in archaeology, the role of archaeology in modern society, awareness and support of heritage conservation initiatives, and Aboriginal stewardship of the archaeological record\” (Pokotylo \& Guppy, 1999, p. 400). Pokotylo and Guppy (1999) explain that there is sufficient public interest in matters related to archaeological heritage, but there is a lack of knowledge regarding the legal processes and frameworks of archaeological conservation. Pokotylo and Guppy (1999) begin by stating the importance of archaeological heritage by explaining their importance for legal and political land disputes as well as cultural tourism. However, multiple factors exist which affect preservation or protection of archaeological resources, including resource extraction and land development, requiring a strong policy framework in order to mitigate impacts. Their study involved the survey of 963 residents of the greater Vancouver metropolitan area in British Columbia in order to gauge public opinion on matters related to archaeological heritage. The survey was administered to a randomly selected stratified sample of households within the study area. The survey intended to capture information related to demographics, the subject\’s knowledge of British Columbia\’s archaeological processes, their interest, and participation in archaeological practices, their opinions regarding the value of archaeology, their awareness of existing conservation initiatives, and their attitudes regarding Aboriginal archaeology.