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Betty Charlie & Clifford Hall Award

The Betty Charlie and Clifford Hall award celebrates Indigenous individuals or collectives (Elders’ groups, communities) who have made deep and significant contributions to the discipline of archaeology. Betty Charlie and Clifford Hall are Sq’ewlets people who have committed their adult lives to caring for and sharing knowledge about the archaeology and ancestors of S’ólh Téméxw, the land, waterways and world of Stó:lō-Coast Salish people of the Fraser Valley of British Columbia. Betty sadly passed away in the fall of 2022.

Candidates for this award are dedicated to the history and heritage of particular cultural places and landscapes, and their descendant communities, which may be their own, and are invested and involved in their preservation, care, stewardship, and the transmission of knowledge about them. They may be community historians, knowledge-keepers, and/or Indigenous archaeologists, and are role models in their communities of practice. Candidates need not be CAA members.

CAA Indigenous Scholarship and Equity and Diversity Scholarships

Purpose: The Canadian Archaeological Association Indigenous Scholarship and the Equity and Diversity Scholarships were created to support the training of people who can help to diversify the field of archaeology. Archaeology has been and continues to be practiced largely by white, straight, cisgender people without disabilities. As a result, we are missing a diversity of voices and lived experiences that would serve to enrich archaeological practice and interpretation. These awards are a small step towards bringing a broader range of perspectives into the discipline. They are designed to support the recipients’ interest in archaeology and help them fund an element of their archaeological training. The scholarships recognize the systemic barriers that Indigenous people, 2SLGBTQIA+ people, people with disabilities and people from racialized groups face during their training and careers in archaeology. People who identify as part of more than one of these groups face additional obstacles, so we prioritize them for awards.

The Smith-Wintemberg Award

The Smith-Wintemberg award is presented to honour professional members of the Canadian archaeological community who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the discipline of archaeology and our knowledge of the archaeological past of Canada. This award is presented in any year, as merited, during the awards ceremony at the CAA Annual Meeting. An eligible candidate should have: 1) significantly advanced the training and practice of archaeologists, and/or 2) made exceptional research contributions, and/or 3) advanced method and theory in some significant way. A recent CV of the candidate as well as a minimum two letters of support from his/her peers are required. A letter of introduction by the nominating individual should highlight the achievements of the nominee. Any supporting materials such as articles or previous awards deemed relevant may be included in the nomination dossier. Candidacies for Canadian archaeologists working primarily outside of Canada can be accepted by the CAA, but priority will be given to archaeologists who have worked on Canadian archaeology for most of their careers.

The Margaret and James F. Pendergast award is awarded by the CAA to recognize exemplary contributions to Canadian archaeology by an avocational archaeologist. Membership in the CAA is not required. Eligible candidates should embody all the principles of the CAA and be a positive role model for archaeology among the Canadian public. Candidates must have conducted archaeological research as evidenced by publications and/or papers delivered at national, provincial/territorial archaeological conferences.

Public Communications Awards

Since 1985, the Canadian Archaeological Association (CAA) has presented annual awards to acknowledge outstanding contributions in communication (public journalism, institutions, and social media) that further insight and appreciation of Canadian archaeology. These awards recognise contributions by journalists, film producers, professional archaeologists and institutions.

Daniel Weetaluktuk Award

"Daniel Weetaluktuk (1951-1982) of Inukjuak (east coast of Hudson Bay) made increasingly important contributions to arctic anthropology between 1976 and 1982. His interests in archaeology, traditional Inuit lifeways, cultural resources, and natural history bridged native and scientific perspectives. Daniel participated in government-sponsored excavations in 1976 and 1977, and began investigating northern Quebec archaeological sites thereafter. Working through the Makivik Corporation, he clearly expressed the need of greater Inuit influence in cultural affairs, on the one hand, and of training and science education on the other. His attempts to improve Inuit-southern Canadian relations and awareness stand as a model for our time." (Allen P. McCartney, 1984, Études/Inuit/Studies 8(10):103)

Two prizes are awarded annually, one each to an undergraduate and a graduate student for written work on a topic related to Canadian archaeology. Students must be CAA members and either be attending a Canadian University or be a Canadian citizen attending a foreign university.

The Roscoe Wilmeth Award for Service

The Roscoe Wilmeth Award recognizes outstanding, long-term service by a CAA member to the Canadian Archaeological Association or to Canadian Archaeology. It is not necessarily awarded every year, and it may be awarded to more than one nominee in a given year.