ABSTRACT
The chapters in this volume have thus far explored the practice of the public humanities – as it relates to the study and teaching of topics connected to the ancient Mediterranean – in institutional contexts, specifically universities and museums with all of their attendant structures and hierarchies. As outlined in the previous chapter, public humanities work situated within these types of institutions, even when aiming to represent marginalised voices and to rethink the current structure of ancient Mediterranean studies, cannot entirely escape many of the forces like colonialism and capitalism that have shaped such institutions and their continued operations. 1 Seeking to represent voices from beyond the confines of traditional academic venues and through a medium that offers more flexibility than a typical academic chapter, the editors of this volume have chosen to present the following conversation with three independent public scholars: Liv Albert, Flora Kirk, and Megan Lewis. These three experts are self-employed and have built their own platforms for engaging with broad audiences interested in the ancient past. Including their perspectives and expertise in this volume allows us to consider how scholars within the academy can learn from our colleagues outside the academy; in particular, their insights shed light on how we might reach non-specialist audiences and how we can support each other's public-facing work.
