Creating a global community of practicing anthropologists

Human Organization, Fall 1998 by Baba, Marietta L

Marietta Baba is Professor of Anthropology at Wayne State University, Detroit, Ml. She also served as chair of the IUAES Commission on Anthropology in Policy and Practice from 1993-1998.

Key words: applied anthropology, networking, international cooperation, International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES)

Anthropologists working in the academy (including the author) often take for granted the international networks that enrich our professional lives. Global linkages are a vital component of academic culture, and often are underwritten by our institutions. In the course of our teaching and research, we become familiar with the work of colleagues in other nations, we personally meet and interact with our international counterparts at conferences and symposia, and we regularly communicate globally via e-mail and more traditional modes. These connections are invaluable - they expand our base of knowledge, create professional opportunities, support fieldwork arrangements for our students, and nurture personal friendships that generally promote global understanding.

But what of anthropologists practicing beyond the academy - do they have the same opportunities to participate in global networks that form around domains of practice? This question may be asked both of anthropologists in the United States and those living in other nations. There are at least two issues to consider here - the existence of practitioner-oriented networks, and access to these networks.

While academics benefit from international networks (or network-friendly environments) that have been in existence for decades, practitioners often find that global networks focused on practitioner issues simply do not exist. Even in cases where regional communities of applied and practicing anthropologists have formed (as in Europe), there may be few cross-regional ties. Further, many practicing anthropologists are affiliated with organizations that do not have the financial resources needed for international travel, and/or do not provide time for such activity as it is not viewed as part of their mission.

As ever more anthropologists enter the world of practice, more and more of us will have difficulty joining global communities of peers. Consequently, there is a growing need for new avenues of communication that allow practitioners to understand the breadth and diversity of our mutual activities, to pool what we are learning across nations, to grow from sharing our experience, and to create synergy through collaboration. In addition, applied and practicing anthropologists of many nations need to seek new ways of collectively exploring and addressing the emergent set of needs and concerns that relate directly to the experience of anthropological practice.

To meet these needs, and to seize an important opportunity for intellectual and professional growth, a group of anthropological practitioners representing several nations established a new commission within the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) - one focusing especially on the work of applied and practicing anthropologists. Now that the commission (which was formed in 1993) is five years old and about to experience its first major leadership succession, the time is right to review what we have learned and take a look ahead.

Historical Background

Prior to the establishment of the commission, an international network of applied/practicing anthropologists had been in formation for at least three years. In 1990, representatives of the Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) and the British Association for Social Anthropology in Policy and Practice (BASAPP) met together in York, England to discuss the creation and expansion of an international network of applied/practicing anthropologists. The representatives agreed that formation of cross-continental ties would be desirable and should be pursued. Later in 1990, the American Anthropological Association (AAA) Board of Directors suggested that an international commission created for the purpose of globally connecting applied/practicing anthropologists be established within the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES). The author was appointed AAA Delegate to the IUAES and charged with responsibility for exploring and possibly establishing such a network.

The IUAES was suggested as the forum for this activity because it is the largest and best-known international organization in our discipline, with members from countries around the globe, and because it is not perceived to be dominated by anthropologists from the United States. Early discussions about forming a global community of practitioners brought to the surface the issue of American domination. Some anthropologists from other nations expressed concern that any organization formed by American anthropologists ultimately would become controlled by Americans (due both to our overwhelming numbers and relative ease of access to travel funds). In fact, this concern was first expressed during the SfAA's earlier efforts to expand internationally. The IUAES, on the other hand, historically has had globally rotating leadership, with the presidency circulating across nations every five years. Thus, while the current president is an American, the two former presidents were Mexican and Yugoslavian, respectively, and prior to that the presidents came from a large number of other countries. As a result of the concern regarding American dominance, early efforts to establish the commission placed strong emphasis on participation from anthropologists outside the United States.