Project description
Unlocking the history of past fire-climate dynamics from speleothems
Speleothems (cave formations) trap organic biomarkers and magnetic minerals over thousands of years, providing an accurate record of historical vegetation shifts and fire activity. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the CAVEFLAME project aims to create a detailed record of Holocene fire regimes and climate shifts using speleothems as multiproxy archives. Analysing organic biomarkers and magnetic minerals within speleothems, it will track fire activity and vegetation changes in the Brazilian tropics. The project will then apply the same methods to both Siberian permafrost and Mediterranean speleothems to provide a comprehensive, multi-regional record of how fire and landscape have evolved in response to climate changes over the Holocene epoch.
Objective
CAVEFLAME will reconstruct Holocene fire-climate dynamics using speleothems as innovative multiproxy archives. Fire strongly shapes ecosystems and climate, yet most long-term reconstructions rely on lakes or peat, limiting resolution. Speleothems, precisely dated and widespread, can preserve organic biomarkers (e.g. PAHs, n-alkanes, GDGTs) and magnetic minerals, offering a unique archive of fire history.
At University of São Paulo, Brazil (partner organisation), the researcher will transfer expertise in organic biomarker analysis, adding fire and vegetation proxies (PAHs, n-alkanes) to ongoing isotope and geochemical work on Brazilian speleothems led by Prof. Stríkis. This exchange will unlock the potential of Brazil’s exceptional collection of tropical speleothems. Complementary training in paleomagnetism will be carried out at the Observatório Nacional (Rio de Janeiro), while a secondment at the Max Planck Institute (Germany) will focus on GDGT paleothermometry. Collaboration with Northumbria University (UK) will extend the multiproxy approach to Siberian permafrost speleothems, enabling tropical-boreal comparisons. In the reintegration phase, Ca’ Foscari (beneficiary) and CNR will embed these combined methods in Italy and apply them to Mediterranean archives, ensuring long-term capacity building.
The project pursues four objectives: (1) generate high-resolution fire histories from tropical speleothems with GDGT-based paleotemperatures; (2) test magnetism as a rapid, non-destructive fire proxy; (3) apply the approach to Siberian archives; (4) consolidate and transfer methods to Italy.
CAVEFLAME will deliver the first south American focused speleothem fire record, advance proxy development, and provide cross-climatic syntheses. By combining organic and mineral signals in cave archives, it will expand paleofire research, produce high-impact publications and open datasets, and inform climate adaptation and fire management strategies in vulnerable regions.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- humanities history and archaeology history
- engineering and technology environmental engineering ecosystem-based management climate change adaptation
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences geology geomorphology speleology
You need to log in or register to use this function
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-GF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - Global Fellowships
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2025-PF
See all projects funded under this callCoordinator
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
30123 Venezia
Italy
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.