- Benjamin Collins, University of Manitoba
- Laura Kelvin, University of Manitoba
Last year in a call to action for provincial heritage funding, Manitoba was referred to as a “Black Hole of Archaeology” in reference to challenges with engagement, practice, and research in the province. While intended as a polemic, this description of the state of archaeology in Manitoba finds some resonance among students, archaeologists, communities, and the public within the province and especially considering the better described and engaged archaeological archives seen with our provincial neighbours to the east and west. The aim of this session is to highlight new and ongoing research and archaeological and curatorial practices that are being undertaken in the province. Themes within this session will encompass transforming curatorial practices, incorporating geochemical, geochronological, and proteomic approaches, extending community-based archaeological practices, furthering the resolution of the province’s archaeological archives, and developing novel, accessible, and engaging strategies for public engagement. In this respect, the goal of this session is to create a space for people with a passion for Manitoba’s heritage, including archaeologists, members of descendent communities students, researchers, and CRM practioners, to discuss Manitoba archaeology within the broader Canadian and North American contexts and with our CAA colleagues.