The final project for this course is divided into two different parts: Part I and Part II. In Part I of the final project, you created a cultural ethics analysis report. Part II of the final project is the creation of a cultural press conference script. Your script will be submitted in Module Seven.
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
· Apply models of ethical decision making for resolving anthropological issues in complex social environments
· Analyze how ethical decision making in anthropology impacts individuals and groups in both the present and future
· Differentiate between Western scientific methods and indigenous knowledge in cultural situations for their ethical application
· Analyze the ownership of culture as it pertains to modern peoples and historical groups
Prompt
As director of the cultural resource management (CRM) agency, you will need to hold a press conference that presents the results of the ethical issue at hand. You must acknowledge the flexibility of ethics in anthropology as time progresses, while cultural groups and professional institutions respond to new group decisions. After attaining all the details from your cultural ethics analysis report, you will compose a script for your press conference.
For this part of the assessment, you will act as CRM director holding a hypothetical mitigation meeting where all the invested parties you selected are present. You will be required to address each party individually and as a whole, while supplying an evidenced, analytical justification for the resolution you devised in the previous section of this assessment.
Present the press conference with the idea of “cultural mitigation” in mind. At the minimum, you will compose a written script to present your objective findings as they deal with the complexity of culture and anthropological ethics. Your script should be a minimum of four pages double spaced.
IMPORTANT: In developing your script, keep in mind that it should be written as if you were a director of a CRM agency who is addressing the public. To lead a successful press conference, you must thoroughly address all five of the following critical elements:
I. Discuss how the resolution you devised in the previous section is not only research informed, but is as culturally sensitive as possible to all selected invested parties.
II. Make sure your presentation is informed by the complex questions of “Who owns culture?” and “Who owns the past?” Explain these anthropological questions as they specifically pertain to your findings in your press conference.
A. Further break down and discuss the issue of ownership of culture as it pertains to living peoples and historical groups that are involved in the archaeological discoveries within the scenario.
B. Further break down and discuss the issue of ownership of the past as it pertains to living peoples and historical groups that are involved in the archaeological discoveries within the scenario.
C. In your final resolution, differentiate between the “ownership of the past” and the “ownership of culture.”
III. How will your decisions on the outcome of the situation impact future generations of cultural groups, specifically economically, religiously, and socially? Use a combination of critical thinking and your background research as an aid to help guide you.
IV. Remember that within groups, there are different levels of invested parties. How will the future of the archaeological site impact an individual differently than a group? How would it impact the town or county differently than the state or nation?
V. Based upon your prior research into Western science and indigenous knowledge, discuss how different cultural groups will be impacted. Use cultural relativistic analysis to project how plans for the future look differently through the eyes of Western science and indigenous knowledge.
What to Submit
Your press conference script should be a minimum of 4 pages, double-spaced, and should create a speech that, when read aloud, would last at least 7 minutes.