"TEACHING RESPECT FOR PHYSICAL EXPRESSION OF CULTURAL VALUES AT THE TRANS-NATIONAL LEVEL; A NEW PARADIGM FOR PEACE KEEPING AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION"

Abstract

All too often, through ignorance, loss, theft, and deliberate destruction, generations of the present fail to preserve, protect, and hand on the physical expressions of culture to the generations of the future. Driven by the belief that preservation of cultural property can provide shared goals and an opportunity for cross cultural and trans-national dialogue, a small group of archaeologists and museum professionals have begun to work together at the international level to develop educational materials specifically designed to teach respect for cultural materials to members of military forces. Like it or not, members of fighting forces are often the very people humanity must rely on to save sacred places, historic structures, collections of cultural property like museums and libraries, and even archaeological sites from the ravages of disaster both natural and man-made. From heritage mapping to archaeology awareness playing cards; this paper describes teaching methods, preservation accomplishments in conflict and disaster areas, plans for future effort and international cooperation, and the implications of these efforts for peace keeping, peace-making, and conflict resolution.