Doctoral Symposium · 2026

Roots and Horizons:
New Perspectives in Environmental Archaeology

Highlighting emerging voices and new approaches through a symposium dedicated to doctoral candidates.

Call for Contributions

Environmental Archaeology provides a unique perspective for understanding the long-term relationships between humans and environments. By studying past environments, resource management strategies, and human responses to ecological change, this field reveals how communities have adapted, transformed, and negotiated their place within changing worlds.

Recognising the importance of creating spaces for exchange and collaboration, we felt the necessity of fostering dialogue among early-career researchers working within Environmental Archaeology. We invite doctoral candidates to contribute to this one-day seminar to foster discussion from the early stages of their careers. The event is organised into four thematic sessions covering the full spectrum of Environmental Archaeology, followed by a concluding round table for collective debate.

To ensure a dynamic exchange of ideas, each participant will deliver a 5-minute lightning presentation focusing on the core impact and social relevance of their research.

Symposium Aims

This symposium aims to build up and strengthen the network between doctoral candidates across different universities. We are fostering a secure environment.

Thematic Sessions

Aerial landscape

Session I: Landscapes and Territory

Spatial analysis, land use and land cover reconstructions

We encourage submissions about how physical space reflects historical and prehistorical power structures, community boundaries, and the right to the land.

Archaeobotanical seeds

Session II: Archaeobotany and Subsistence

Crops, wild resources, and the heritage of food sovereignty

We invite contributions focused on the management of plant resources, agricultural autonomy, and the long-term history of human-plant relationships as a pillar of community survival.

Faunal remains

Session III: Zooarchaeology and Coexistence

Human-animal interactions and the management of faunal resources

Submissions examining the ethical and economic dimensions of coexistence, social vulnerability in the face of environmental change, and the shared history between species are highly encouraged.

Climate and resilience

Session IV: Climate and Resilience

Adaptation to climate variability and the history of social vulnerability

Submissions of research which focus on how societies faced environmental shifts and what the past teaches us about resilience are warmly welcome.

Submit Your Contribution

Participants are invited to submit an abstract in English of up to 200 words via the link below. Please remember to select the specific session you are applying to.

Access Application Form
For further questions, do not hesitate to contact us at:
roots.horizons2026@gmail.com