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CONFERENCE PROGRAMME AND GENERAL I N F O R M AT I O N

C L I M AT E C H A N G E , ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY A Multidisciplinary Approach From Archaeology, Climatology And History On Climate Change And The Possible Collapse Of Civilization 

ORGANISERS Miguel Fuentes Francisco Diego   SPONSORS CREDOC Institute, UCL Institute of Archaeology, UCL World Archaeology Section, IoA-UCL

Institute of Archaeology, UCL 31-34 Gordon Square, London

CLIMATE CHANGE, ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY A Multidisciplinary Approach from Archaeology, Climatology and History on Climate Change and the Possible Collapse of Civilization. ORGANIZERS Miguel Fuentes [email protected] PhD Student. Institute of Archaeology, UCL Dr. Francisco Diego Fras [email protected] Senior Teaching Fellow Astrophysics Group, UCL SPONSORS CREDOC Institute, UCL Institute of Archaeology, UCL World Archaeology Section, IoA-UCL

C O U L D M O D E R N C I V I L I Z AT I O N C O L L A P S E ?

S C H E D U L E O F P R E S E N TAT I O N S Day One: December 19 

09:30 - 10:30

Opening Of Conference

10:30 - 11:30

Francisco Diego Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCL

11:30 - 12:00

Coffee Break

12:00 - 13:30

Short Documentaries and Discussion Magnitude, Scale and Rhythm of Current Climate Change

13:30 - 15:00

Lunch

15:00 - 16:00

Alessandro Cessarelli University of Cambridge

16:00 - 17:00

Daniel Silva University of Sheffield

17:00 - 17:30

Coffee Break and Brunch

17:30 – 19:30

Short Documentaries and Discussion Climate Change and Past: An archaeological and historical perspective

Miguel Fuentes, Institute of Archaeology, UCL

Day Two: December 20 09:00 – 10:00

Francisco Diego Opening Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCL

10:00 – 11:00

Bill Sillar Nick Branch Institute of Archaeology, UCL University of Reading Stuart Black University of Reading

11:00 – 11:30

Coffee Break

11:30 – 12:30

Sue Hamilton Institute of Archaeology, UCL

12:30 - 13:00

Short Documentaries Climate Change and the XXI Century

13:00 – 14:30

Lunch

14:30 – 15:30

Claudia Comberti Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford

15:30 – 17:30

Peter Wadhams Polar Ocean Physics Group, University of Cambridge

17:30 - 18:00

Coffee Break

18:00 – 19:00

Dawn Gaietto Slade School of Fine Art, UCL 

19:00 – 20:00

Miguel Fuentes Institute of Archaeology, UCL

20:00 – 21:00

Short Documentaries and Discussion Climate Change, Science, Academia and Politics

P R E S E N TAT I O N S T I T L E S A N D A B S T R A C T S Day One: December 19 

MIGUEL FUENTES Ins$tute(of(Archaeology,(UCL( 09.30 – 10:30 Title: Magnitude, Scale and Rhythm of Current Climate Change: Why is it important for archaeological and historical practice? General data and discussions. Abstract: The main goal of this presentation will be to evaluate, from a general point of view, the magnitude, scale and rhythm of current climate change and some of its main characteristics and tendencies, this in comparison with previous events of climatic transformations that occurred in the geological past and considering its possible impacts on human civilization today. We will also discuss several future scenarios of climate change during this century, this attempting to establish some linkages between the current climatic situation and some cases of climate change in the archaeological past. Potentialities and limits of social and technological resilience of human societies will be discussed. Relevant cultural questions will be considered such as: How can we compare the role of climate change on societies in the archaeological past with current situation? How can we measure the possible impacts of climate change in the future, for example considering archaeological data? What is the importance of climate change for the archaeological and historical research, for example in terms of theoretical and methodological problems?

FRANCISCO DIEGO Department(of(Physics(and(Astronomy,(UCL(( 10:30 - 11:30 Title: Planet Earth I: Origin and development of environments in the Universe Abstract: From a simple and distant origin, our Universe has been growing in size and complexity for billions of years. Environments suitable for life have been around for most of that time, but only recently, planet Earth emerged with perhaps the most complex environment that ever existed. How diverse is this complexity? How did it develop? How does it compare with environments found on other planets?

ALESSANDRO CESSARELLI University(of(Cambridge( 15.00 – 16:00 Title: The Indus Civilisation, a Tale of Rains, Fires and Lost Cities: ceramic technology vis-à-vis urban decline Abstract: This paper will present preliminary results of ceramic analysis on assemblages from the excavation at Alamgirpur, North-Western India. These results are part of a PhD research project which aims to trace phenomena of social reproduction and change in Bronze Age South Asian villages through a technological and compositional study of Indus Urban, Post-Urban and Post-Indus ceramic industries. In this study, morphostylistic and scientific analysis are used to explore ceramic production and distribution, and co-dependent socio-material agencies and cultural choices related to rural communities. Amongst others factors, Indus urban development and decline will be considered in order to assess ceramic materials consumed at small-scale settlements. Technological varieties and the full trajectory of the chaîne opératoire for the production of a large

variety of pottery types during the Harappan, Late Harappan (c. 2500-1600 BC) and Protohistoric (Painted Grey Ware, possibly c. 1300/1200-500 BC) periods in NW India will be identified. Pottery will be also used as a medium for understanding technological and social changes which might have taken place in the arouse of a weakening of the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) at c. 2200-2100 BC. After providing an overview of the broad PhD research project and its methodology, preliminary results of the current project will be proposed.

DANIEL SILVA University(of(Sheffield(( 16:00 – 17:00 Title: A critical analysis of Environmental Services and Carbon Trade Markets as mitigation policies for climate change. . Abstract: In this essay we examine and discuss the contention that climate change cannot be tackled via the application of market-based approaches. The fundamental thesis is that those approaches cannot undertake global climate change and that their applicability will have minor and limited success, just as they have had until now. Our focus of attention relies on two of the most important public-private policies in existence today, which are based on market mechanisms, namely: Environmental Services Markets (ESMs) and Carbon Trade Markets (CTMs). Our thesis is backed up by a number of arguments that have been posed by Larry Lohmann, Kathleen McAfee and Dan Brockington: three of the main scholars and activists in the field of political ecology and recognised experts on the ESMs and CTMs strategies. Nevertheless, as there are some significant blind spots in their approaches, we will put forward two positive criticisms regarding their critique claims, namely: 1) the uncritical homologation of economic growth with capital accumulation; and 2) the dynamics of winners, losers and the ‘internal struggle’ between different sections of capital.

P R E S E N TAT I O N S T I T L E S A N D A B S T R A C T S Day Two: December 20 

FRANCISCO DIEGO Department(of(Physics(and(Astronomy,(UCL( 09.00 - 10:00 Title: Planet Earth II: From hell to paradise Abstract: A history full of accidental processes that allowed life to emerge and evolve in close interaction with a unique and fragile environment. In this talk, we explore the science behind the origin and nature of paradise and humanity. We look at examples of environmental strategies that may help the human race survive and flourish in the long-term.

BILL SILLAR NICK BRANCH Ins$tute(of(Archaeology,(UCL(((((((((((University(of(Reading( ( STUART BLACK University(of(Reading( 10:00 – 11:00 Title: Food production and resilience to climate change in the Peruvian Andes Abstract: The central Andes is characterised by intensive agricultural production focused on the use of terracing and canal irrigation as well as herding. Food crops and domesticated animals have not only been the basis of household subsistence but also a major concern of colonising empires such as the Wari, Inca and Spanish. Past changes in the climate and

social-economic organisation resulted in changes in the emphasis of agropastoral activities. But, equally changes in land, water, plant and animal management affected local and regional ecologies and transformed society. In this paper we raise questions about the degree to which previous examples of radical social change (e.g. the collapse of Wari/ Tiwanaku and the emergence of the Inca Empire) can be linked to climate change, and the degree to which the agricultural and social systems in the Andes today have sufficient resilience to withstand future climate change.

SUE HAMILTON Ins$tute(of(Archaeology,(UCL( 11:30(–(12:30( Title: Rapa Nui (Easter Island) making monuments, eco-changes and resilience (circa AD 1200-1600) Abstract: Interest in Rapa Nui’s iconic moai (statue) construction period is dominated by a focus on its demise. Words and phases such as ‘collapse’, ‘the island that self-destructed’, ‘ecodisaster’ and ‘disastrous European contact’ abound. There is a tendency to analyse the moai as isolated entities, rather than as elements of a dynamic interrelationship between people, landscape, places and architecture. A neglected mystery of Rapa Nui is the relationship between a remote island’s changing environment and the emergence of an island-wide cosmology of constructing with stone. The presentation will pull together the diverse research avenues by which the UCL AHRC funded ‘Rapa Nui Landscapes of Construction Project’ has investigated the meaning, contexts and adaptive resilience of the moaiperiod construction activities. It offers a Polynesian framework of understanding place and environmental change.

CLAUDIA COMBERTI Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford 14:30 - 15:30 Title: Climate change adaptation past and present: the role of ancient landscapes in the Bolivian Amazon in present-day adaptation Abstract: Whilst present-day climate change is having unprecedented impacts across societies and ecosystems, some past human societies have faced challenges analogous to today. In the Llanos de Moxos region of the Bolivian Amazon, the responses and solutions of pre-Colombian civilisations to seasonal flooding are evident across the landscape in the form of ancient earthworks. These are influencing adaptation responses today amongst the Indigenous communities now residing within the anthropogenic landscape, who are facing extreme floods and droughts more severe than any in cultural memory. Recent flooding events in particular have catalysed two main responses, which are explored through this research project: 1)Development-style adaptation projects modelled on the techniques of the ancient civilisations are being implemented across the region; 2) An autonomous movement, whereby local peoples are beginning to notice and use the structures that have until now been a prominent but largely irrelevant feature of the landscape. This research explores the unique situation and the potential relevance of historical adaptation strategies. It explores the outcomes of the two strategies, and what lessons the situation offers for adaptation to climate change elsewhere. Methods used combine ethnographic techniques of participant observation, interviews, surveys and site visits; and examination of historical records. Findings highlight issues and challenges in implementing adaptation projects, and factors important in autonomous adaptation at the local scale – including perceptions of the historical ancestors of the region, which emerge as important in influencing local peoples’ responses. Finally, it offers recommendations for supporting local-scale, equitable and empowering adaptation processes to cope with current environmental change.

PETER WADHAMS Polar Ocean Physics Group, University of Cambridge 15:30 - 17:30 Title: Climatic threats arising from polar changes. Abstract: The rapid loss of sea ice arising from the polar amplification of global warming is causing a number of immediate threats to the global climate. These include: a reduction in global albedo, amplifying warming at all latitudes; acceleration of sea level rise due to melt of ice sheets on land; the possibility of a large methane pulse from the Arctic offshore continental shelves. I discuss the impact of these and other threats.

DAWN GAIETTO Slade School of Fine Art, UCL 18:00 - 19:00 Title: Climate Change & Non-Cartesian Representation: A Call for the Collapse of a Culture of Consumption Abstracts: The images in Unfixed Consciousness/Positive Unconsciousness are manifestations of the collective agency between the mechanical, technological, and atmospheric elements as well as my own as composer and interpreter. This work explores the problem of anthropocentric positions in viewing environmental issues by vacillating between degrees of constructing situations and harnessing existing phenomena to create work in a way that does not provide preference to humans specifically in the context of environmental concerns. The position of the human self and ego as central is a perspective that must be challenged, and I argue to be replaced with non-cartesian ways of seeing that require reciprocity. This

must first be executed at the level of art and thereby societal selfrepresentation and superiority. I am proposing the notion of anthrodecentric art to work on this task. Anthrodecentric Art is art that does not create nor reify a position of privilege for the human actors as a central point or perspective, but aids in revealing the agency of nonhuman actants present in the materials, processes, and receiving of art. As such, anthrodecentric art seeks to actively refuse the positioning of nonhumans as a resource for human consumption and allow the nonhuman agencies to be present in their own capacities and allow room for their agencies to become visible, avoiding a longstanding framework that has suppressed their presence. My work in Unfixed Consciousness/Positive Unconsciousness investigates the relationships of the human to nonhuman and seeks an ontological state that evades human privilege particularly in the realm of environmental thinking.

MIGUEL FUENTES Institute of Archaeology, UCL 20:00 – 21:00 Title: The possibility of collapse from a marxist perspective: Marx, Luxemburg and Benjamin Abstract: This presentation will focus in discussing some ideas of Karl Marx, Rosa Luxemburg and Walter Benjamin regarding to the concept of collapse, this integrating some of the most accepted scenarios of global warming for this century and its possible relationship with class struggle and the historical process during the next few decades. It is stated here that the concept of collapse, widespread within the marxist tradition as the "possibility of barbarism" (in opposition to socialism), need to be understood from now, far from being a theoretical problem, as one of the most fundamental strategical problems of the history of revolutionary theory.

C L I M AT E C H A N G E , ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY DEC 19 & 20, 2016

The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences. —Winston S. Churchill If the abolition of the bourgeoisie is not completed before an almost calculable moment in economic and technical development (a moment signaled by inflation and poisongas warfare) all is lost. Before the spark reaches the dynamite, the lighted fuse must be cut. Walter Benjamin