ABSTRAK Upaya pengelolaan warisan budaya di situs arkeologi pada masa sekarang, harus memperhatikan makna sosial (sosial significance) bagi masyarakat sekitarnya. Konsekuensi pemahaman tersebut, menuntut adanya sesuatu perubahan kebijakan (advokasi), mengalihposisikan penduduk di sekitar situs yang semula sebagai objek menjadi subjek. Perubahan kebijakan tersebut, mengubah peran penduduk di sekitar situs bukan sebagai pihak yang dikontrol dan dikuasai, melainkan sebagai mitra yang sejajar dengan pihak pengelola warisan budaya, agar asset yang dimiliki memberikan kontribusi balik baik material maupun non material yang berguna untuk kehidupanya. Upaya mewujudkan konsep pengelolaan yang menempatkan warisan budaya pada kontesks sosial, menuntut dikembangkanya pendekatan partisipatif yang lebih berorientasi pada masyarakat (community-oriented). Implementasi pendekatan tersebut, diwujudkan melalui pemberdayaan. Makna pemberdayaan adalah, pertanggungjawaban sosial arkeologi terhadap masyarakat, yang terkena dampak baik langsung maupun tidak langsung akibat pengembangan situs. Kata kunci: Pemberdayaan, masyarakat, pengelolaan, pertanggungjawaban arkeologi, makna sosial. ABSTRACT. The Empowerment of Community Around Archaeological Site In the effort to manage cultural heritages nowdays, it is important to take into account the social significance of a site to its surrounding communities. As a consequence, we are required to make an advocacy (change of policy) to revise the position of the local inhabitants around a site from being an object to a subject. Such change of policy is significant to change the position of the local inhabitants within the site area from the controlled party into equal partner. Communities should be involved in the process of cultural heritage management so that the valuable asset will give back good contribution- both materially and non-materially – which will be of benefited to the well-being of cultural heritage and its surrounding communities. The effort to implement the management concept that places cultural heritage in sosial context, calls for the importance of developing participative approach, which is more community oriented. The implementation of this type of approach is through community empowerment. Empowerment means the social responsibility of archaeology to the communities that have to put up, directly, with the effects of development of site. Key words: empowerment, community, management, archaeological responsibility, social meaning.