Bears Ears Archaeological Experts Gathering

The Bears Ears National Monument was established through a presidential proclamation, under
the Antiquities Act of 1906, by President Barack Obama on December 28, 2016. Bears Ears National
Monument covers some 1.35 million acres of federal land in southeastern Utah managed by the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Bears Ears National Monument
will be managed cooperatively between BLM and USFS in collaboration with the five-member
Bears Ears Tribal Commission. The BLM, USFS, and Tribal Commission are in the initial stages of
drafting a management plan for the new national monument.

This report shares the outcomes of a two-day gathering of archaeologists who work or have worked
within what is now Bears Ears National Monument or in southeastern Utah more generally. Our
gathering sought to tap their pool of professional knowledge to help land managers and the general
public better understand the scope and meaning of archaeology in Bears Ears National Monument
and the surrounding region. We also sought to identify a group of researchers who were interested
in engaging with issues related to research on and management of Bears Ears National Monument’s
archaeological resources going forward. This pro bono effort is solely advisory

Bear Ears Report