Press Releases

World Archaeological Congress launches new web site
(4 August, 2006)

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The World Archaeological Congress

Please reply to:
Associate Professor Claire Smith
Department of Archaeology
Flinders University
GPO Box 2100
Adelaide. SA. 5001.
AUSTRALIA

Media Release: World Archaeological Congress launches new web site.
Date: Friday, 4 August 2006

The World Archaeological Congress (WAC) is pleased to announce the launch of its new web site at worldarchaeologicalcongress.org. Over the past few months, the WAC website has undergone a thorough review and redesign. More than just a cosmetic makeover, all of the content in the site has been scrutinized, and the overall user interface has been designed to be much more accessible and user friendly.

"We are absolutely delighted with this new site", said Claire Smith, President of WAC. "Having an effective web presence is such an important part of any organization today, and is especially important for a global organisation. This site was a real challenge for our web team-in keeping with WAC's aim to promote international debate and diverse interests, the site needed to be accessible easily to people from countries as varied as Nigeria, Thailand and the USA, each of which has different Internet capabilities."

This work was conducted under the guidance of WAC's Internet and Global Communications Task Force, chaired by Michael Ashley from UC Berkeley. "We are grateful for the exceptional efforts of Timo Bishop, who has not only designed the new site, but has also accepted the role of WAC web master," said Ashley. "Our hope is that we can provide the WAC community with a digital collaboration portal to share ideas and activities worldwide."

Over the next few months, re-engineering work will continue on underlying web architecture to comply with international accessibility and web standards. Dynamic content generation functions and improved user experiences, including wikis, forums and improved communication tools will be added. The Task Force will be calling for new links to WAC member sites, and welcomes suggestions, comments and corrections to the site via the Feedback page.

The World Archaeological Congress is an international organization that represents professional archaeologists in tertiary institutions, museums, government agencies and the private sector in more than 90 countries. WAC has a particular concern to promote the protection of sites and objects of the past, and the ownership and conservation of archaeological heritage, to foster debate between archaeologists of different nations and theoretical orientations, and to give voice to minority and Indigenous interests.

The mission of WAC's Internet and Global Communications Task Force is to develop and maintain a digital framework that embodies the international and diverse interests of the WAC membership. We are committed to creating a dynamic, multi-lingual, content rich collection of web and communication tools brought together in a cohesive Internet portal that is inviting and easy-to-use. Perhaps our most important task is to diligently act as stewards of the digital assets by developing strategies for long-term, sustainable data archiving. For further information and inquiries, please click here.

For further information:

Michael Ashley, Chair, WAC Internet and Global Communications Task Force, University of
California, Berkeley, USA
Email: mashley@berkeley.edu

Claire Smith, President, World Archaeological Congress, Department of Archaeology,
Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia
Email: claire.smith@flinders.edu.au

About WAC

The World Archaeological Congress is the major global organisation in archaeology, with elected representation from all parts of the world. It holds an international congress every four years to promote the exchange of the results of archaeological research; professional training and public education for disadvantaged nations, groups and communities; the empowerment and betterment of Indigenous groups and First Nations peoples; and the conservation of archaeological sites.

The last Congress, WAC-5, was held from June 21-June 26 at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. WAC-5 was the first full World Archaeological Congress to be held in North America. It was attended by some 1,200 archaeologists, native peoples and international scholars from some 75 nations.

The Congress Patron for WAC-5 was Harriet Mayor Fulbright. Patrons of previous WAC Congresses include Nelson Mandela and Prince Charles. WAC-5 was held in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History and National Museum of the American Indian, and in collaboration with the Getty Conservation Institute.