Electronic Symposium Format

This session is an electronic symposium at the 2019 Society for American Archaeology Conference in Albuquerque, NM. As an electronic symposium, the format is a bit different than regular sessions. Full papers won’t be read during the two hour session. Instead, papers, graphics, and other content will be posted here. Participants will give brief presentations, but most time will be allotted for discussion materials gathered on this website. The session is sponsored by SAA’s Digital Data Interest Group.

Session Abstract

Chairs: Jolene Smith and Kelsey Noack Myers

The volume of digital archaeological data available online has increased dramatically in recent decades. Maturing technical infrastructure allows for increased discoverability, usability, and higher resolution of data reporting. In this rapidly changing information landscape, considerations for archaeological data sensitivity are more critical than ever. While it is understood that disclosing archaeological site locations could lead to looting and site destruction, it’s imperative to consider information beyond geospatial data, and to acknowledge the consequences of releasing, transmitting, and storing data online. How can we effectively assess risk to balance protecting information with open science ideals? When we choose to release or withhold archaeological data, how can we avoid reproducing exploitative, colonialist structures that have the power to harm descendent communities? What practical steps can we take, and how have we adjusted our procedural guidelines to keep pace with the rapidly-changing world of digital data online?

Outside Contributors, Questions, and Comments

While formal, in-person discussion and presentation is limited to registered participants, we’d love to post additional presentations or papers on this site.

In-Person Session format

Session details

Sunday, April 14 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM, MDT UTC-6h

s385 Room: 110 Galisteo, Albuquerque Conference Center

Banner Image Credit: Cecilia Smith, from “Ethics and Best Practices for Mapping Archaeological Sites” in Futures and Challenges in Government Digital Archaeology, SAA 2019, Washington, D.C.

All papers, presentations, and the code used to generate this website are available at https://github.com/saaddig/SAA-2019-openness-sensitivity.