Community-Based Heritage Education, Training and Research : Preliminary Report On The Tungatsivvik Archaeological Project

Despite an immediate need for northerners trained in cultural resource management and the strong desire of many northern communities to direct historical research, there continue to be few opportunities for students to receive formal train ing in heritage research. A promising new approach is the Tungatsivvik Archaeological Project, which since 1991 has been part of the Environmental Technology Program offered through Arctic College's Nunatta Campus in cooperation with the community of Iqaluit. Integrating lectures, field exercises, lab analyses, and community reporting, the program allows students and community members alike to acquire technical knowledge and skills they can use to develop community-based heritage programs. The more than 100 features identified at the site, where excavations in the first two seasons have yielded more than 2000 artif acts and 7000 animal bones, include late prehistoric (Thule culture) dwellings, food caches, kayak stands, and burials. Results of t he project are being actively integrated into local educational and interpretive structures, as community members from elders to school children participate in "making history come alive."