With the support of the Anthropology Program at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg (USFSP), the 2018 conference was a huge success. The meeting attracted a total of 211 Florida-based and out-of-state attendees.
FAS 2018 kicked off Friday evening with a fun welcoming reception at 3 Daughters Brewery, featuring the Florida Archaeological Council’s Stewards of Heritage Awards ceremony. Saturday morning and afternoon were devoted to paper and poster presentations on the USFSP campus. In all, 65 papers and 10 posters were presented. A panel discussion on rising seas and archaeological site loss also took place during the conference. Over 20 vendors exhibited technological displays and had related books and artwork for sale during the day.
The presentation topics were far-ranging, thought-provoking, and entertaining. An enjoyable banquet and awards ceremony, highlighted by keynote speaker Dr. Michael Francis, capped off an eventful conference on Saturday evening. Over ninety individuals attended the banquet. Two local tours were held Sunday morning: 30 attendees toured the Cultural and Natural History Center at Weedon Island Preserve and hiked to the location of recent archaeological investigations at the Weedon Island site; and 28 individuals visited the four archaeological sites currently located in City of St Petersburg public parks.
AWIARE wishes to thank the FAS Board and its entire membership for all of their help and support with the event. We are honored to have served as hosts of the 2018 (70th annual) Florida Anthropological Society annual meeting.