Maia Dedrick

  

I am an archaeologist working in Yucatán, Mexico, to understand the livelihoods decisions that farmers in a rural community made throughout the Colonial period. My methods are historical, ethnographic, and archaeological, and include the identification of plant remains to better understand food and agricultural histories. I also conduct community-based participatory research, and the place where I conduct archaeological research is also home to a community of about 500 people! So we work closely together (I dig in backyards, for example), and I feel incredibly grateful to the people I've worked with there and the ways that they have shaped my research outcomes and ways of thinking.