Session: #420

Content:

Over the past years, Early to Mid-Holocene coastal adaptation studies have emerged as a key research topic to understand processes of economic intensification and human resilience to environmental change. As the sea level rose during the Lateglacial Interstadial coastal configuration dramatically changed, inducing sedimentary infilling of estuaries and bays. Those sea-level changes were translated into loss of human settlement areas, reduction of hunting territories, and modification of coastal biotopes. A key debated issue, is to determine to what extent Early to Mid-Holocene changes on coastal biotopes and marine biological productivity affected patterns of human exploitation of coastal resources.
This session aims to present new multidisciplinary findings that include:
- Archaeological records of the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods both in terms of change in settlement distribution over time along coasts and hinterlands, and past dietaries (bioarchaeological remains of animals -invertebrates and vertebrates- as well as geochemical analysis);
- Paleogeographical studies recording geosystem adjustment to sea-level rise (multiple-core analysis, 3D modelling, time-slice reconstruction);
- Paleoecological studies focussing in coastal biotope reconstructions (palynology, aquatic fauna, geochemical analysis);
- Spatial and temporal correlations between archaeological and palaeoenvironmental records of the socio-ecosystem changes;
- Comparisons of European coastal areas (Mediterranean, Atlantic, Baltic, Black Sea) in order to highlight similarities and discrepancies.
Thus, we encourage participation of researchers that are interested in understanding of past human-coastal environment feedbacks during the Early to Mid-Holocene. Ultimately, this session aims to take benefit of past evidences in order to better understand resilience of societies to current global changes.

Session: #420

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