The course will focus on the accessibility and reusability of research data across a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including academic peers, heritage and museum professionals and custodians, and the wider public. As our discipline transitions from traditional methodologies to innovative, technology-driven approaches, there is a growing need to critically evaluate how these tools are influencing and shaping both archaeological practices and data. The shift towards digital documentation is not merely a technical upgrade but potentially represents a fundamental change in how we engage with and interpret data. This transformation can also be seen as the emergence of new digital ecosystems. The datasets we produce, together with their structures, affordances and modes of circulation, create environments where archaeological knowledge is shaped and reused. Reflecting on these dynamics helps us identify the boundaries of this evolving ecosystem and the new possibilities it defines. Unlike earlier periods where digital tools mirrored their analog counterparts (easing their adoption through familiar interfaces) modern digital techniques often lack any historical precedent, particularly in field recording systems, integrated databases, and linked digital infrastructures.
This break from skeuomorphic design necessitates a rethinking of established methodologies and compels researchers to embrace new skill sets and more flexible approaches to data creation and data handling. In this sense, methodological reflection is not only about improving practice but about recognising how these emerging digital ecosystems reorganise relationships between data, tools, and users. The ecosystem is shaped both by the technical properties of the datasets and by how researchers activate their affordances in practice. New forms of interaction, comparison, and recombination do not arise automatically from technology itself; they emerge through situated use within these evolving environments.
Understanding and managing this transition is crucial for ensuring that the data produced is not only robust but also accessible and reusable by a diverse range of archaeological stakeholders. It also offers a chance to review and rethink the process of interpretation taking the ambiguity of the archaeological material and the uncertainty of the process into account. We will approach these questions through the lens of applied digital methods and field-to-archive workflows, focusing on how documentation choices shape downstream analysis, integration, and interpretation. In addition, the course will critically discuss the role of newer AI technologies in retrieving and processing data from digital archives, exploring how the organisation, structure and metadata of datasets (often determined at the point of recording and during post-excavation workflow design) influence their effectiveness. Participants will engage in discussions about possible future scenarios, considering how these evolving technologies may shape the construction of narratives that support professionals working in different areas of the heritage sector.
This course will invite PhD students to explore how they can facilitate the meaningful reuse of their research data. We will focus on the importance of considering the diverse use-cases, audiences, and stakeholders who engage with their work. Through discussions and workshops, participants will critically examine the ways in which digital documentation can be made more accessible and reusable, ensuring that their research not only contributes to academic discourse but also serves broader societal needs. Participants will be encouraged to identify concrete points in their own research process where small documentation decisions can significantly improve accessibility and reuse. Through this lens, documentation is understood as participation in a wider digital ecosystem, where even minor design choices contribute to defining how data will circulate, combine, and generate future interpretive possibilities.
Course Work
The course will consist of both seminars and lectures, with workshop-based discussion of documentation workflows, data structuring, and reusability strategies. The participating lecturers will each give a lecture during the course, as well as participating as prime movers in the discussion of PhD presentations.
The PhD students are required to write a 7-10 page paper (excluding bibliography, Times New Roman, 12 point, 1,5 line spacing, or approximately 3500 words) examining a particular aspect of your digital work in archaeology in line with the course theme, with an emphasis on critical reflection and relevance to your own research practice.
During the course, each paper will be allotted approximately 45 minutes, beginning with a 15-minute summary and presentation by the paper author. Another PhD Fellow, assigned beforehand, will serve as a discussant and provide comments for roughly 10 minutes. Following this, the assigned discussant will facilitate and chair an open discussion on the paper for approximately 20 minutes.
Lecturers
- Dr. James Taylor (University of York, UK)
- Prof. Nicolo Dell’Unto (Lund University, Sweden)
- Dr. Åsa Berggren (Lund University, Sweden)
- Dr. Federico Nurra (Ministère de la Culture, France)
Deadlines
- Paper submission deadline: October 30th 2026
Credits
5 ECTS.
Location, travel and costs
The Graduate School will finance and arrange accommodation, a welcome dinner, and supply lunch during the course week for all participating PhD candidates who are part of the Dialogues with the Past Network.
Two and two PhD students will be accommodated in twin rooms according to gender.
The PhD candidates will have to arrange and finance travel to and within Paris as well as dinners during the course week (except for the welcome dinner). If you are in the DIALPAST network and do not have travel funding to cover these costs, please get in touch with meriem.boulaziz@iakh.uio.no
Registation
The Graduate school invites all registered PhD students in the DIALPAST network to apply for participation.
From these applications, 10 PhD students will be admitted to the workshop.
Application deadline: Postponed