Reflections on Attending the WAC Ethics Committee Workshop

摘要

This short piece recalls my expectations for the Ethics Committee Workshop, reflects on how refreshing and stimulating it was to see all my expectations tumble, and concludes with further puzzlement about how to proceed. Supplementary abstract, written by Julie Hollowell: Joan arrived at Stanford with a specific interest in developing an International Code of Ethics with guidelines that would challenge archaeologists to carry out more responsible and ethical research abroad. She found that almost all of her preconceived ideas for such a Code were altered as a result of our discussions about the limitations of drafting a document specifying what was “good” or “bad” from a generalized perspective. The focus instead lay on the PROCESS of making ethical decisions, based on WAC principles, alternative ways of constructing an ethical outcome, and learning from case studies. She emphasizes that ultimately we will certainly want to weigh our suggestions for ethical-decision-making so that certain outcomes are favored over others and notes that this is where the application of social justice as a key organizing principle comes into play.