Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Zenobie Garrett - Episode 50
57 Plays10 years ago
Profiles in CRM features short interviews with CRM professionals from all experience levels and educational levels. I ask a standard list of questions and see how each person answers them based on their experience.
Recommended
Transcript
00:00:00
Speaker
You
Introduction to the Archaeology Podcast Network
00:00:01
Speaker
are listening to the Archaeology Podcast Network. This is Zenobi Garrett and you're listening to Profiles in CRM.
50th Episode of Profiles in CRM
00:00:12
Speaker
Welcome to Profiles in CRM, Episode 50. I'm your host, Chris Webster. Profiles in CRM asks CRM professionals nine simple questions.
What is Contract Archaeology?
00:00:19
Speaker
The answer's very wildly depending on their experience and education. Because of the nature of contract archeology and how small this field really is, some people choose not to reveal their name or the company they work for. Stay to the end of the show to hear how you can have a chance to answer these same questions. All right, we're here on Profiles and here's the
Meet Inobi Garrett
00:00:35
Speaker
first question. What is your name and who do you work for?
00:00:38
Speaker
My name is Inobi Garrett, and I work for Geo-Archaeology Research Associates in Yonkers, New York. All right. And what's the highest degree you've earned?
Inobi's Academic Achievements
00:00:47
Speaker
I just got my PhD in January, so PhD. Nice. Congratulations, doctor. Thank you.
Inobi's CRM Experience
00:00:56
Speaker
How long have you been working in CRM, or did you work in CRM?
00:01:00
Speaker
I've been working in CRM on and off for almost a year now. I worked it as a part-time job while I was writing up, and now I'm working it as a part-time job while being out of graduate school. Nice, nice. All right, and where have you worked? What states have you worked in?
00:01:19
Speaker
So I've only really worked CRM for New York City, city area. And some of the projects that our companies worked on has also been in Delaware. So basically like the, and New Jersey, so New York City plus area. I'm curious, and some people might be too, this is a kind of side
Archaeological Projects in NYC
00:01:38
Speaker
question. What kind of stuff gets done in New York City? Oh, so it's actually really interesting. So we just finished up a big project and the stuff that we are digging
00:01:48
Speaker
is a lot of its historic 19th century, 20th century landfill. But it's really interesting because it's at this time when the city was really growing. So the site that we dug at was on the Upper West Side, and we did this environmental reconstruction. And for the longest time, right up until the 1800s, the Upper West Side wasn't part of New York City proper. Now it's very much in New York City.
00:02:17
Speaker
But at the time, prior to this big dump, it wasn't at all. And in fact, it's on the coast, whereas now it'd be like two or three streets inland. So we're kind of getting the archeology of not just the construction of Manhattan Island, but the growth of urbanism in New York City. So New York City becoming a city. Wow. Okay. Nice. Yeah, it's cool.
00:02:38
Speaker
Yeah, that is cool. All right, so what is the position you usually have in CRM, like on a CRM project, and what is the highest position you've attained in your short year of CRM?
Roles and Public Outreach in Archaeology
00:02:48
Speaker
In my short part-time year. Well, so normally I'm kind of, I have two roles. So I'm usually at the position of what would be an archeology technician, but a lot of my work actually happens within the office. So I do a lot of help with the reports and with business development and public outreach.
00:03:08
Speaker
That's all under our technician, but that's basically kind of what I do. Okay. Okay. All right. Those are the sort of set up questions. And now I hear the, uh, the more fun questions.
How Has CRM Enhanced Inobi's Perspective?
00:03:19
Speaker
Um, what is the best thing? Yeah. What is the best thing that's happened to you that's related to being an archeologist? And I usually say this can be personal or professional. And for you, I would say you can expand this outside of CRM, of course.
00:03:30
Speaker
Okay. So, well, honestly, um, so just to start with the CRM part, uh, working in CRM has exposed me to a whole new group of people. Um, just like when I was, and I don't think that it's not that you can't be exposed to this in academia. I just wasn't, but working in CRM and especially doing like the public outreach component has just, you know, exposed me to obviously you and all this, this whole network online and just like kind of increased my understanding of.
00:04:00
Speaker
what archaeology is and what it does. So that's been really nice is having a huge, well, not huge, but a bigger network of people to talk about archaeology with. And then
00:04:13
Speaker
I mean, even in my non-CRM projects, I just like meeting people and being able to go to other countries and meet people and talk to them and work with them and, you know, learn things about other cultures. That's what I like. All right. So what is the biggest thing that you would change that would make being a CRM archaeologist better?
CRM and Academic Archaeology Integration
00:04:37
Speaker
Um, Oh, that would make it better. Can I, can I have two answers? Sure. Go ahead. All right. So one is, I just, I wish that CRM were a little more valued outside of the archeology world. Um, so in terms of not seen as like a detriment to development or, uh,
00:04:55
Speaker
like a hassle or anything but something that is worthwhile doing and I just think that that would make it better for everyone because CRM is great as far as you know rescue archaeology and preserving the past and creating history. But the other thing I would wish to see would be
00:05:13
Speaker
more interaction between CRM and academic archaeologists. I know there's a lot of people that do it and I know that there are a lot of good programs out there, but I think there's more that could be done because I don't see there being a divide. I see us all as doing archaeology. We just do it sometimes under different conditions or with different questions, but we're all archaeologists and we should all be talking to one another more than we already do.
00:05:39
Speaker
Nice. I agree. All right. What is your career goal in CRM?
Inobi's Career Aspirations
00:05:43
Speaker
If you have a career goal in CRM specifically. Okay. So I was just going to say, I'm not sure I have one yet, but, um, I don't know if CRM is for me, but I definitely, if I'm going to pursue a career in archeology or public education, I want to stay involved in CRM because I think CRM has a lot of.
00:06:07
Speaker
CRM archaeologists know what's going on in whatever area that you're in. They know the archaeology better than anyone else, and I think that's really important for public outreach and public education. So I don't necessarily have a career goal except to stay in touch with the CRM world. All right, so last
Advice for Aspiring Archaeologists
00:06:25
Speaker
question. If you could give an undergrad thinking about CRM one piece of advice, what would it be?
00:06:31
Speaker
Oh, well, that would be to just do it, basically, because I remember being an undergrad and I always thought that I had to get all this training before I could do anything. And the truth is, even after my doctorate, there are things I don't know how to do in the field and there are things that I'm undoubtedly going to screw up one day. And that's terrible. You should try and minimize the amount of things that you screw up, but you can't.
00:06:55
Speaker
It's better to just go and try it and see if you like it and figure it out rather than to like hold off because you're worried or nervous or scared about not having the right training or not doing it right or not having ever been an archeologist before. CRM, they'll help you develop your archeology skills.
Be a Guest on the Show
00:07:16
Speaker
Show notes for this and all episodes can be found on the Archaeology Podcast Network website at www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/. At that page you'll also find a form that you can fill out so you can be interviewed on the show. Interviews take less than 30 minutes and you don't need any special equipment. Thanks for listening and I'll see you in the field.
Podcast Credits
00:07:38
Speaker
The show is produced by Chris Webster and Tristan Boyle and was edited by Chris Webster. This has been a presentation of the Archaeology Podcast Network. Visit us on the web for show notes and other podcasts at www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com Contact us at chrisatarchaeologypodcastnetwork.com