PRR Project

Summary

Research on human evolution and the development of human cultures often requires an understanding of the climates and environments in which humans have thrived and evolved. The environment, along with its natural changes, is alternately seen as presenting limitations that prompt cultural and biological adaptations, or as a potential source of innovations. This symbiosis with the environment holds particular significance in prehistoric societies. Throughout its decade-long history, ICArEHB has developed substantial expertise and earned recognition in the field of paleoenvironmental reconstruction.Leading and collaborating on field projects across various regions of the European and African continents has enabled ICArEHB researchers to identify and collect diverse environmental datasets from geological, paleontological, and archaeological sites that remain largely unexplored. Samples recovered from coastal regions of sub-saharan Africa are particularly relevant here. This is because when compared to the northern hemisphere, where paleoclimate and paleoenvironmental data and studies are widely available for integration with archaeological data, datasets and models from the southern hemisphere are still trailing in this regard. For example, our projects aimed at understanding the origins and dispersals of early modern humans across Africa during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene would greatly benefit from having consolidated climatic and environmental data for these periods.The ICArEHB Chair in Environmental Dynamics and Human Evolution seeks to provide a tenure-track position to an exceptional researcher to lead pioneering studies in paleoclimate and paleoenvironmental research, focusing on the Pleistocene and early Holocene periods.This position requires an integration of non-archaeological proxies with the archaeological record to offer groundbreaking insights into human evolution, particularly the emergence and dispersal patterns of early humans.The successful candidate will possess a profound interdisciplinary knowledge base in Marine, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, with a specialized focus on paleontological analysis, sedimentology, and geochemistry. Experience in both natural and anthropogenic contexts, substantial fieldwork experience, and proficiency in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and statistical analysis are essential. The researcher should demonstrate a successful history as a PI in competitively funded projects, with notable achievements in leading international and interdisciplinary fieldwork teams, particularly in African contexts.The chairholder is expected to establish and expand collaborations, both nationally and internationally, fostering interdisciplinary work on human-environmental interactions, climate, and sea-level changes. Success in this role involves securing funding from national and international agencies, leading teams, and promoting interdisciplinary and international collaborations to enhance ICArEHB´s research network and scientific output.Other tasks will include the implementation of collaborative research initiatives with African universities and research centers, aiming to involve local communities in understanding their environmental history and its implications for current and future climate resilience. Such collaboration will result in participation in global networks, like the Future Earth program, contributing to interdisciplinary research on sustainability and human-environment interactions across different temporal scales.This Chair demands active support for ICArEHB´s research themes, including the Adaptations to Coastal Environments and the Prehistoric Behavior and Dispersals in Africa. The chairholder is also expected to be responsible for co-coordinating a significant part of the laboratory infrastructures and analytical procedures linked to paleoenvironmental studies at the center.Additionally, the chairholder is anticipated to serve as a representative of paleoenvironmental studies at the SEA-EU consortium and to engage in the dissemination and impact work package of the reSEArch-EU Project, connecting with a wide range of audiences to foster cultural and scientific practices within society. Participation in outreach and knowledge transfer initiatives, such as arranging events for students and taking part in actions promoted by UAlg, is also anticipated. Furthermore, the candidate is expected to play a role in teaching, supervising, and mentoring students across all levels of archaeological and environmental.