What All of Us Can Learn from the Old Ones
In this presentation, Dr. Ortman discusses two important movements in archaeology today. The first is the recognition that archaeologists study the cultural heritage of Indigenous peoples, and the second is the urge to make the results of archaeology helpful for the present and future. The presenter suggests that a productive way to integrate these two concerns is to treat the archaeological record as contemporary Indigenous people always have—as a source of knowledge for how to live now. Dr. Ortman provides a few examples from his experience to illustrate this point and suggest a few ways that Mesa Verde region archaeology could take advantage of this approach.