b'PAGE4 FPAN RETROSPECTIVE 2005-2020 PAGE5MESSAGE FROM THEEXECUTIVE DIRECTORPublic archaeology seeks to engage the general public with the archaeologicalremainsofourpast.InFlorida,archaeological sites are often overlooked because many are buried or submerged. Each is a reminder of a human past stretching back thousands of yearsand each contains a story that can only be heard through careful study.DR. WILLIAM LEESEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR This publication was planned early in 2020, before the world was swept with the COVID-19 pandemic and before social injustice was pushed to the forefront of the nation and worldagainafter the unnecessary death of George Floyd in Minnesota. While the goal of these digital pages is to reflect on the first fifteen years of the Florida Public Archaeology Network, these events affect us now and how we move forward. We are committed to making changes that address, or are informed by, these tragic events. In February of this year staff gathered at our annual planning retreat, and we began to address social injustice that we saw in how we study and preserve the archaeological record. We are working now to focus and refine this early work, proposed as one of our strategic goals, in light of what we have all learned this spring. Likewise, necessary reaction to the pandemic has causedSoutheast Region staff and volunteers during investigations of the Bowles-Strachan House property.us to focus on remote programming, something that we envision will remain an essential part of our programming going forward. Ourgoalistoworkwithlocalcommunitiestopreservethese archaeological places and their stories through publiceducation about Florida archaeology and through active effort at sites long threatened by development and increasingly by climate. WILLIAM LEESFLORIDA PUBLIC ARCHAEOLOGY NETWORKEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'