The Institute for the Modelling of Socio-Environmental Transitions (IMSET) addresses the interplay between population history, cultural practices and the dynamics of environmental systems, and how they unfold across different scales.
We live in an era of unprecedented environmental transformation including rapid change in global climate and land cover; increasing pollution and biodiversity loss; and widespread environmental degradation.
While some environmental variability is natural, human activities are causing additional physical, chemical and biological changes, often at scales and speeds never before encountered. The scale of this impact is so great that the modern era can be thought of as a new, humanly-created geological epoch – the ‘Anthropocene’. International organisations such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) highlight the severity of threats to human society from environmental change and biodiversity loss.
The Institute for the Modelling of Socio-Environmental Transitions (IMSET) addresses one of the most significant global challenges facing humanity today: how we manage and respond to environmental change. It does this by exploring how past societies were affected by environmental change, how they responded to these challenges and, therefore, what are the most sustainable options available to present-day societies under similar pressures. This will be achieved through the application of bespoke statistical and numerical modelling to archaeological, anthropological and past environmental data.
Book on to our 2021 online seminar series to explore these issues, share ideas and work together to address environmental change.
Human adaptation & coastal evolution in northern Vietnam: an overview of outcomes & spin-outs
Date: Originally Thursday 18 February at 4pm - postponed and will be re-scheduled for a later date
Speaker: Dr Ryan Rabett, Queen's University Belfast
Please note: Unfortunately due to unforeseen circumstances this seminar has been cancelled. The event will be re-scheduled as soon as possible.
Understanding coastal change: impact and implications global to local scales
Date: Thursday 18 March at 4pm
Speaker: Dr Sally Brown, Bournemouth University
Find out more and book your place.
Modelling land use in the ancient Near East: methodological problems and interpretive potential
Date: Thursday 22 April at 4pm
Speaker: Dr. Dan Lawrence, Durham University
Find out more and book your place.
If you have any queries please contact [email protected].
