This session seeks to evaluate the state of archaeological activism in Canada. Activism can take various forms: reshaping educational programs or heritage laws; engaging on-the-ground participation in protests; researching how today’s injustices have been shaped and left untouched by past practices; engaging with a broader public using social or traditional media outlets; developing collaborative projects and critically evaluating their outcomes; unionizing initiatives in private or academic settings; speculation as to what tomorrow could look like.

Topics can vary as well, from general concerns stemming from the capitalist and colonial structure of Canada, to the place that archaeology and bioarchaeology as practices should hold in a changing educational and socio-political climate, or to how (bio)archaeologists may engage in the day-to-day concerns of the communities that host their work.

We welcome contributions ranging from coast to coast, and from practitioners at work in archaeological and/or bioarchaeological settings. We prioritize slightly shorter papers than usual, so that more time can be devoted to increasing the workshops coverage and discussions afterwards. We consider this workshop as a step towards knitting stronger relationships between archaeological activists across Provinces and Nations, identifying their most pressing concerns, easing the sharing of knowledge and tools, and organizing at a larger scale.