Introducing

Middle East Heritage and Politics Newsletter
Archaeology, History and the Modern Middle East

The Middle East Heritage and Politics Newsletter is designed to inform and engage those who want to see the Middle East in terms of its archaeological and historical past and its political and cultural present—and the connections between them. As editors we solicit articles from both expert commentators and educated non-specialists. We will also provide informed analysis of major news events affecting Middle East Heritage and Politics.

We are Sandra Scham and Paul Scham and, in addition to our education and research in the United States, we also lived and worked in the Middle East for a number of years.

Sandra Scham is an archaeologist, a former editor of the journal Near Eastern Archaeology and current Washington Correspondent for Archaeology Magazine. Sandra teaches the archaeology of the Ancient Near East at Catholic University and has also taught at the University of Maryland and Jerusalem University College in Israel. Sandra has done archaeological work in Israel, Jordan and Southeastern Turkey and has a Ph.D. in Anthropological Archaeology. She has also worked with Palestinian and Israeli archaeologists on projects dealing with issues of common interest in archaeology and heritage.

Paul has done graduate study at Princeton in modern history, has a law degree and is currently a researcher and Adjunct Scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. For six years he worked on the development of joint Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian academic and NGO projects at the Truman Institute for the Advancement of Peace of Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Paul has taught courses on conflicts in the Middle East and modern Middle Eastern politics at George Mason University and the Middle East Institute and other institutions. He frequently appears on radio and TV as an analyst of current developments, but his particular interest is in historical narratives and their potential use in the peace process.

Both of us have a strong background in teaching in universities and in adult enrichment programs. In addition to lectures, we have been on radio and television news programs discussing our areas of expertise. We are published authors of many articles and papers as well as contributions to popular magazines and newspapers. Our most recent books are Connectivity in Antiquity and Shared Historis: A Palestinian-Israeli Dialogue.