CONFERENCE ON CIRCULAR EARTHWORKS IN CAMBODIA, will be held 14-19 November, 1999 in the Faculty of Archaeology, Royal University of Fine Arts, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and is sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) under the Patronage of the German Ambassador Dr.Harald Loeschner.

The conference focuses on new discoveries in the red soils area in Kampong Cham Province, southeast Cambodia. In a workshop the initial results of the recent work of Cambodian students and international specialists will be presented and discussed in comparison with similar Southeast Asian studies. The conference will include an excursion to the Krek/Mimot area near the Vietnamese border.

For further information, catact:Mr.Ros Sokhom, Secretary by phone 855-23-214079, or by mail to: Gerd Albrecht, "EARTHWORK CONFERENCE", PO Box 2190, Phanom Penh 3 Cambondia.

THE ECONOMICS OF HERITAGE: UNESCO CONFERENCE/WORKSHOP ON THE ADAPTIVE RE-USE OF HISTORIC PROPERTIES IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC was held 9-17 May 1999 in Penang and Melaka, Malaysia. Hosted by the Office of the UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific and the State Governments of Penang and Malaysia, the conference focused on how contemporary and economic re-use of historic properties and public spaces is a practical and sustainable tool for long term conservation. This was part of a series of UNESCO-sponsored conferences/workshops on heritage management and development in Asia and the Pacific. The conferences meet specific aims of UNESCO's Programme on Integrated Community Development and Cultural Heritage Site Preservation in Asia and the Pacific through Local Effort (LEAP). The forums are not academic excercises, but rather provide practical experience and on-site assessment through lectures, field trips and workshops.

The objectives of this conference were to:

1. provide a forum for discussion on issues relating to the adaptive and contemporary re-use of historic buildings and public spaces;

2. allow participants and those interested in heritage preservation to learn and share from each other's experience;

3. introduce case study models for replication in other heritage sites in the Asia/Pacific region, and

4. establish a network to strengthen communication among the participants, owners of historic properties and experts on heritage preservation and re-use.

THE INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM ON ARCHAEOLOGY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA IN THE 3RD MILLENNIUM was held in Penang, Malaysia on 27 to 29 September, 1999. The Colloquium was organized and hosted by the Centre for Archaeological Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia.

The aims of the Colloquium were:

1. to explore alternative future directions for the development of prehistory in SE Asia, taking into account each country's level of development, strengths and weaknesses;

2. to identify the main research issues and problems in SE Asian prehistory;

3. to establish a prioritized agenda for the development of field in SE Asia; and

4. to provide one another with an update on the national and regional issues and problems to help individual countries stategise their excavations to obtain the necessary data to understand their own national or local cultural development while at the same time filling in gaps for the complete regional perspective.

There were 12 sessions in the Colloquium. The first five sessions were on current research & future plans in Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam & Cambodia, Laos & Myanmar, and Thailand & Malaysia. The next three sessions focused on the problems and issues of the Paleolithic in Southeast Asia, of the "Hoabinhian" and Neolithic in Southeast Asia, and of the Metal Age in Southeast Asia with discussions including recommendations for future research. Session 9 discussed training needs and development of research facilities, and Session 9 (b) was an evening question and answer session on presented research papers. The final day's two sessions presented the discussions and recommendations for the problems and issues sessions, followed by a session to adopt the various recommendations. Details of the Colloquium's program may be obtained from the Colloquium Secretariat at the following e-mail address: dir_ark@usm.my

PS. The review of the International Colloquium on Archaeology in Southeast Asia in the 3rd Millennium will be in the next issue.

SEMINAR ON SOUTHEAST ASIAN INDUSTRIAL ARCHAEOLOGY (SS-316) This one - week seminar was held on 7-13 June, 1999 by SPAFA Headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand. Its rationale is that the rise of indigenous and introduced industries, ranging forms an important part from simple ironsmiths' and weavers' workshops to true factories, forms an important part of the economic and social history of any region. In Europe and Asia, Archaeologists have made significant progress in recovering and preserving early industrial sites. But in Southeast Asia, such work is still in its infancy.

Southeast Asia archaeologists have begun to produce useful studies of metallurgical, ceramic and lithic industries dating to the paleolithic through early historical periods, and in a few places, ethno-archaeological research has commenced on such objects as traditional pottery making. However, more complex and later industries have been largely neglected, especially, those of the past few hundred years: for instance, Dutch and indigenous shipbuilding in Java; northern Vietnam; cast iron smelting in Vietnam and the Philippines; and medium-to-large scale textile production in several parts of the region. In some cases, a few traditional factories and mines can be still be found in use, and in other cases, abandoned industrial sites are still more or less intact. It is essential that these as well as excavated industrial sites of earlier periods be studies and preserved

SECOND MEETING OF GOVERNMENTAL EXPERTS ON DRAFT CONVENTION ON THE PROTECTION OF UNDERWATER CULTURAL HERITAGE was held on 19-24 April, 1999 by UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France. The aim of the convention is to protect valuable underwater cultural heritage - such as shipwrecks and archaeological sites - which is increasingly vulnerable to pillaging by treasure hunters as ever more efficient underwater excavation equipment becomes more readily accessible. All too often this has led to the loss of material of inestimable value to study of the origins and history of civilizations.