News from the Register of Professional Archaeologists-EAA Conference Review

The Fifth Annual Meeting of the European Association of Archaeologists (EAA) was held in Bournemouth, England, September 15th to 19th, 1999. Berle Clay and I attended as representatives of the Register of Professional Archaeologists. Presently, European archaeology is very similar to our own experiences in the middle 1970s and early 1980s, but yet it is unique and diverse in so many ways. Areas of concern to European archaeologists sound all too familiar: how to define significance, the need for well-justified research designs, the need for standards, and the academic cries of despair over private sector, contract-driven research. To facilitate the reader's understanding of Europe's diverse approach to our discipline, a thumbnail sketch is provided below of the current status of archaeology in that region of the world. This is followed by suggestions regarding possible roles the Register might play in helping to achieve global ethical standards for the conduct of archaeological research.