Leading international experts in cultural heritage returned to AlUla, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday for a major archaeology gathering.
AlUla World Archaeology Symposium, which features nearly 100 of the industry’s most prominent names, aims to survey the key concerns facing the discipline and to cement AlUla as a global hub for the field moving forward.
“This is a land rich in treasures and ancient civilisations, a historic meeting point for cultural exchange on a global scale,” said Abdulrahman Alsuhaibani, vice president of culture for the Royal Commission of AlUla, in his opening remarks. “We hope to broaden understanding and to draw inspiration from the past, to guide the present, and enhance the future by protecting the cultural heritage both here and across the world."
The event follows last year’s AlUla World Archaeological Summit, which united experts with students and enthusiasts from Saudi Arabia to promote the field of study to a wider audience in the kingdom.
The symposium, which features academics and scientists from 34 countries, is a more inward-looking affair, exploring not only the latest understanding of mobile communities, some of which once inhabited the area in north-west Saudi Arabia, but the flawed methodology that has traditionally plagued the field and miscoloured understanding of nomadic and Bedouin peoples.
“We’re very good at identifying changes, but we are also here to talk about what should change in our own approach,” said Laura Morabito, a senior manager of cultural heritage at the Royal Commission of AlUla.
The historically problematic field of archaeology has drastically matured over the past 100 years, allowing experts to work out a strong understanding of ancient civilisations such as that of the Nabataeans who once carved their tombs into the rocks of Hegra in Saudi Arabia. But nomadic communities have proven more difficult to grasp, which experts now realise is largely a problem of their own making.
“We’ve realised that we have long had a very western way of looking at the world. We need to focus on the decolonisation of archaeology and cultural heritage,” said Willeke Wendrich, professor emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles. Wendrich also explained that colonisation is not merely defined by an invading power that takes physical control of an inhabited land, but by the effects that central powers have over local communities.
Wendrich, who has worked for 35 years in Egypt, follows what she calls a teaching-learning continuum in her approach to studying mobile communities, in which both scientist and subject are equal partners in each study.
“Although there are clear vestiges of colonialism in archaeology, things have changed,” said Wendrich. “We’re really trying to live this teaching-learning continuum, and part of that is about taking inventory of the material culture, and how we do that.”
Wendrich presented her findings on the Ababda people of Berenike, Egypt, who still reside in the area of the ancient port. Spending time with the community, Wendrich spoke with members to best understand what they find important to mutually decide what is most worth preserving.
She said: “We made a collection together and created an exhibit doing everything according to the rules in the collection. The whole collection started with me asking one of the people we work with: ‘What is important to collect?’ He said everything that goes onto a camel, and there is a lot that goes onto a camel, from tassels to handbags,” said Wendrich. “And when we asked the women, they said everything used to make coffee.”
One key misunderstanding of Bedouin and other desert-based communities in particular is rooted in the western idea of the desert itself – an orientalist, Lawrence of Arabia-esque romanticisation of an empty space made thrilling by a fear of the unknown. The area becomes something to be conquered and its resources something to be exploited.
But this paradigm is on its face misguided, experts at the symposium warned. Stefano Biagetti, a professor at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, echoed Wendrich, saying that, for mobile communities, the desert is not empty – it is home. And within their traditions is a deep wealth of knowledge that needs to be understood on the terms of the community itself. And those insights are invaluable, particularly in the sciences of sustainability.
“Academic science is dominated by western paradigms,” said Biagetti. “But there are sciences everywhere, each that has its own rules of transmission and a body of knowledge that was not made in universities. Everything related to pastoralism is related to this, for example. And there is a huge body of knowledge about practising sustainability in the desert – it’s not about merely surviving, they want to be there.”
The symposium, which runs until Thursday, will also feature discussions on how climate change has affected mobile communities, the impact of war and the role of indigenous communities in preserving cultural heritage sites.
Recipe: Spirulina Coconut Brothie
Ingredients
1 tbsp Spirulina powder
1 banana
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (full fat preferable)
1 tbsp fresh turmeric or turmeric powder
½ cup fresh spinach leaves
½ cup vegan broth
2 crushed ice cubes (optional)
Method
Blend all the ingredients together on high in a high-speed blender until smooth and creamy.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
Indika
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EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111
Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre
Emirates airline – 600555555
Etihad Airways – 600555666
Ambulance – 998
Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
RESULTS
1.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh 50,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner AF Almomayaz, Hugo Lebouc (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer)
2pm Handicap (TB) Dh 84,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner Karaginsky, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
2.30pm Maiden (TB) Dh 60,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner Sadeedd, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard.
3pm Conditions (TB) Dh 100,000 (D) 1,950m
Winner Blue Sovereign, Clement Lecoeuvre, Erwan Charpy.
3.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh 76,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Tailor’s Row, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
4pm Maiden (TB) Dh 60,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Bladesmith, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
4.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh 68,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Shanaghai City, Fabrice Veron, Rashed Bouresly.
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