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The MACHI Project

The Maya Area Cultural Heritage Initiative (MACHI) was initiated in 2006 as a means of addressing current threats to the conservation of ancient and modern cultural heritage in the Maya region.

Our mission is to:

• Communicate the value of pre-Hispanic Maya cultural heritage to local populations in the five nations of the Maya region (Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador);

• Collaborate with local NGOs and communities in the development of grassroots, informal educational initiatives that familiarize local people with the pre-Hispanic past and the importance of archaeological conservation;

• Encourage local peoples, particularly Maya descendants, to engage in dialogue about the past as a means of enhancing stewardship over archaeological heritage;

• Assist local people in making connections between the Maya past and present by presenting educational materials in Mayan language and juxtaposing modern and ancient traditions and spirituality;

• Disprove misconceptions about the ancient Maya and their descendants; and to

• Promote the sustainable conservation of Maya cultural heritage.

Read the full Mission Statement.


PROJECTS

MACHI Interviews
Belize Toledo Classroom Education
Petén Radio Soap Opera
Guatemala Highlands
Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico
Honduras Children’s Program
Belize Interactive Museum

 
 
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WHAT'S NEW?


April 2010: Dr. Parks talks about the progress of the cultural mapping project coordinated by the Riecken Foundation in Guatemala.

IN THE MEDIA

Por Esto! (01/09/2009)

BU Today (10/24/2007)

BU Today (06/15/2006)

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Parks, McAnany, and Murata 2006“The Conservation of Maya Cultural Heritage: Searching for Solutions in a Troubled Region” Journal of Field Archaeology, Volume 31 (4).

Ishihara, Reiko, Patricia McAnany, and Morvin Coc 2008 The (MACHI) Project in Belize: Bridging the Past and the Present through a Public Education Program in the Toledo District, Belize. In Research Reports in Belizean Archaeology, Volume 5: Papers of the 2007 Belize Archaeology Symposium, edited by John Morris, Sherilyne Jones, Jaime Awe, and Christopher Helmke, pp. 307-313. Institute of Archaeology, National Institute of Culture and History, Belize. Print Belize, Ltd.