Lenka Starková from UWB is the first Czech woman to lead international aerial archaeology group.

For the first time in its 40-year history, a Czech woman was elected to head the international Aerial Archaeology Research Group (AARG). Over the next three years, Lenka Starková from the Faculty of Arts at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen will lead the research group.

Drones, sensors, and wings are now a standard part of archaeological research. With the advent of new technologies, the scope of the Aerial Archaeology Research Group—founded over forty years ago as an international platform for experts in aerial archaeology—is constantly expanding. Consequently, AARG connects archaeologists working with remote sensing, spatial data, and digital methods in the study of archaeological sites and historical landscapes. As of September, a Czech is heading the organization for the very first time.

Lenka Starková, head and founder of the Center for Digital Archaeology at the Faculty of Arts, UWB, was unanimously elected at the 43rd annual meeting of this specialist group, which took place in Pilsen. The event brought experts from more than 22 countries to the West Bohemian Museum in Pilsen. Alongside traditional aerial archaeology, discussions focused on remote sensing, new digital technologies, and methods of spatial and landscape archaeology. Presentations covered research from Central Europe, the Mediterranean, and non-European regions.

Lenka Starková’s professional career has also been long tied to landscape research. Since 2013, she has worked in the Middle East, primarily in Iraqi Kurdistan and Iraq. Working with landscapes and spatial data gradually led her to a more intensive use of digital technologies in archaeology. She focuses heavily on the issue of so-called conflict landscapes and threats to cultural heritage. Using satellite imagery and retrospective analysis, she maps the rapid destruction and transformation of rural landscapes caused by 20th- and 21st-century warfare. All these activities integrate long-term collaboration with Czech and international experts and institutions, combining digital methods with field archaeological research.

“Being elected to this position is a great honor for me, but I also view it as a commitment. To me, AARG is not just a professional organization. It is a community of people who regularly meet, share experiences, and advance the field. That makes me appreciate the trust my colleagues have placed in me all the more,” says Lenka Starková. She will spend the next three years at the helm of AARG. Together with other executive committee members, she will be responsible for the organization's operations, its future academic direction, international cooperation, and the organization of upcoming annual conferences.

“I would like AARG to be able to respond to the rapid development of digital methods, which today are fundamentally changing how we understand archaeological landscapes,” Starková adds. For the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen, her election also represents a stronger presence for Pilsen archaeology on the international stage. For the first time in AARG's more than four-decade history, the specialized organization will be led by a representative of Czech archaeology. This is not her first leadership role in the international academic community, either; since 2023, she has also headed the Czech-Slovak chapter of Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA), an international organization focused on computer and quantitative methods in archaeology.