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A general definition of cultural resource management (CRM) is the practice of managing cultural resources ^[1] and heritage assets. The goal of CRM is to assess and mitigate affects of cultural resources at risk of being destroyed or are being destroyed due to construction or natural disasters. Assessments and mitigation are completed mainly through survey and documentation of archaeological and cultural sites along with community survey of impacts.

This term gained popularity and recognition by American archaeologists in the mid 1960s and early 1970s in the US wanting to shift focus to preservation through management rather than exploitation amidst ongoing environmental and conservation movements.^[2][3] The creation and enacting of The Archaeological and Historic Preservation Act of 1974, commonly known as the Moss-Bennett Act, helped to fuel the creation of CRM.^[4] CRM is largely defined through legislation on state, federal/national, and international levels.

In CRM, cultural resources can be tangible or intangible. Tangible resources, or physical resources, include archaeological artifacts, buildings/structures, skylines, sites, art, and museum archives. Intangible resources, or non-physical resources, include cultural traditions, practices, knowledge, oral history, language, rituals, performances, music, and storytelling.^[5][6][7] An example of a tangible resource protected in part due to CRM is the New York skyline.

Although early legislation such as the 1906 Antiquities Act provided protections, it wasn't until the 1970s when the US National Park Service coined the term 'cultural resource.'^[8] According to the US National Park Service, cultural resources fall under the following categories: cultural landscapes, historic/prehistoric structures, archaeological resources, and museum collections.^[9]

The National Park Service defines cultural resources as being "Physical evidence or place of past human activity: site, object, landscape, structure; or a site, structure, landscape, object or natural feature of significance to a group of people traditionally associated with it." *original citation didn't transfer from original page and isnt working**Harbor, Mailing Address: PO Box 177 Bar; Us, ME 04609 Phone:288-3338 Contact. "Cultural Resources - Acadia National Park (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Archived from the original on March 28, 2015. Retrieved 2021-04-29.*

Although often used interchangeably, CRM focuses in legal compliance while heritage management is a broader term to describe the practice of managing resources. CRM is predominately used in the US^[10] whereas heritage management is a global broad term.^[11] Depending on the country, CRM is also commonly referred to as Contract Archaeology, Compliance Archaeology, Heritage Management (HRM), Cultural Heritage Management, Consulting Archaeology, etc.^[12]

Main article: Cultural anthropology

Understanding the traditional cultures of all peoples is essential in mitigating the adverse impact of development and ensuring that intervention by more developed nations is not prejudicial to the interests of local people or results in the extinction of cultural resources. In order to mitigate by understanding or acting on behalf of or for communities, CRM utilizes the fields of anthropology: cultural, biological, linguistic, and biological.

It incorporates Cultural Heritage Management which is concerned with traditional and historic culture. It also delves into the material culture of archaeology. Cultural resource management encompasses current culture, including progressive and innovative culture, such as urban culture, rather than simply preserving and presenting traditional forms of culture.

However, the broad usage of the term is relatively recent and as a result it is most often used as synonymous with heritage management. In the United States, cultural resources management is not usually diverse from the heritage context. The term is, "used mostly by archaeologists and much more occasionally by architectural historians and historical architects, to refer to managing historic places of archaeological, architectural, and historical interests and considering such places in compliance with environmental and historic preservation laws."^[13]

Cultural resources include both physical assets such as archaeology, architecture, paintings and sculptures and also intangible culture such as folklore and interpretative arts, such as storytelling and drama.

At a national and international level, cultural resource management may be concerned with larger themes, such as languages in danger of extinction, public education, the ethos or operation of multiculturalism, and promoting access to cultural resources. The Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity is an attempt by the United Nations to identify exemplars of intangible culture.

Cultural resource management has been shaped since its introduction by both state and federal laws. Beginning with legislation under the Antiquities Act signed in 1906 and more recently with NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act) signed in 1990,recently updated in 2024. Key legislation used in the US in CRM today are NAGPRA, NEPA, and NHPA Section 106 consultation^[14] and 110 Reviews.^[15][16] Below is a simple timeline of the history of legislation in regards to cultural resource management^[17][18]:

• Antiquities Act of 1906
• National Stolen Property Act of 1948
• Management of Museum Properties Act of 1955^[19]
• Reservoir Salvage Act of 1960^[20]
• National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) 1966
• The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
• Archaeological and Historic Preservation Act of 1974 (AHPA)^[21][4] (also referred to as the Moss-Bennett Act)
• Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (ARPA)
• Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990 (NAGPRA)

While some federal legislation directly grants protection, alternate legislation such as environmental and natural laws are utilized in CRM to grant protections.^[22] Similarly, some states go further to enshrine more protections through state legislature. Examples of state specific laws are CAL-NAGPRA and CEQA in California. Examples of laws unique to Texas include the Antiquities Code of Texas of 1969 (ACT) ^[23] and Texas Health and Safety Code (THSC) Chapter 711.^[24]

In the United States, a common Cultural Resource Management task is the implementation of a Section 106 review: CRM archaeologists determine whether federally funded projects are likely to damage or destroy archaeological sites that may be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. This process commonly entails one or more archaeological field surveys.

Cultural Resource Management in California was originally determined by rulings like the National Register of Historic Places or the Native American Graves Protections and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).^[26] While many states teaching and working in the CRM space primarily operate off of these rulings and others currently in use listed above. California decided that the national level legislation was not enough to cover the needs of the 150+ unique tribal identities that call the state home. Listed below are the unique Cultural Management laws that shape the field in the state of California.

AB-978^[27], titled the California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act^[28] was passed in 2001 by the State Legislature. The bill requires all state agencies and museums that receive state funding that have control over or possession of collections that have human remains or cultural materials to form a process for identifying tribal association and a plan for repatriation of these artifacts. This bill also created a Repatriation Oversight Commission to oversee the process in the state.

After several years of enforcement for CalNAGPRA after facing opposition from state run universities^[29], the state passed AB-2836^[30]. This bill added in 2018 added additional responsibilities to the Repatriation Oversight Commission to assist the University of California in adopting policies and procedures to become compliant with CalNAGPRA.

The most recent change to CalNAGPRA came in 2020 with the passing of AB-275^[31] which went into effect January 1, 2021. AB-275 similarly to AB-2836 added additional responsibilities to the Repatriation Oversight Commission. AB-275 requires the commission to maintain a list of California Indian Tribes and their respective territory spaces in the state. AB-285 also requires the commission to publish notices of preliminary inventories and summaries on the commission website.

The California Environmental Quality Act^[33] was passed in 1970 to protect the environment by requiring state and local agencies to identify, disclose, and mitigate significant, avoidable environmental damage from discretionary projects. While many aspects of this bill can be used to dispute issues in CRM in the state the most common is AB-52. AB-52^[34] required an update to the existing guidelines for the CEQA Initial Study Checklist. These new checklist questions asked evaluators to consider impacts to tribal cultural resources. These resources include but are not limited to a site, feature, place, cultural landscape that is geographically defined in terms of the size and scope of the landscape, sacred place, or object with cultural value to a California Native American tribe.^[35]

Cultural resource management features people from a wide array of disciplines. The general education of most involved in CRM includes, but is not limited to, sociology, archaeology, architectural history, cultural anthropology, social and cultural geography, and other fields in the social sciences. Common roles for cultural resource managers typically include being in charge of museums, galleries, theatres etc., especially those that emphasize culture specific to the local region or ethnic group. Cultural tourism is a significant sector of the tourism industry.

In the field of cultural resource management there are many career choices. One could obtain a career with an action agency that works directly with the NEPA or even more specifically, Native American resources.^[13] There are also careers that can be found in review agencies like the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), or the state historic preservation office (SHPO). Beyond these choices, one could also obtain a career as part of the local government and work with planning agencies, housing agencies, social service agencies, local museums, libraries, or educational institutions. Jobs at private cultural resource management companies can range from field technicians (see shovelbum) to principal investigators, project archaeologists, historic preservationists, and laboratory work. One could also become a part of an advocacy organization, such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation.^[13]