ABSTRACT
This paper examines different strategies of public involvement in two communities at opposite ends of the world which we have both visited for purposes of archaeological research. One of these is the semi-arid region of Androy in southern Madagascar and the other is the island of South Uist in the Scottish Western Isles, also known as the Outer Hebrides. Problems of what constitutes ‘indigenous’ and whether there is a standardized ‘indigenous public archaeology’ are examined. The concept of ‘indigenous’ is fraught with problems – of purity and exclusivity – which can be overcome by focusing on the more inclusive concept of ‘local’. Within an increasingly globalized society, everyone is a local somewhere.
