Project description DEENESFRITPL Following the footsteps of early human colonisation in South America Despite the size and geographical importance of north-western South America, the study of the first human colonisation in the region is limited and incomplete. However, the human journey to this region during the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene period impacts a wide range of disciplines from geography to molecular biology. This is because human colonisation in a vast and diverse region took place during fundamental climatic and environmental changes. During this period, megafauna was extinct, plants were domesticated, and a remarkable diversity in human groups was developed. The EU-funded LASTJOURNEY project will investigate the human colonisation process by using the archaeological and palaeoecological data across the diverse environments of South America. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective Understanding the human journey of global colonisation is the history of modern humanity and the development of the diverse characteristics of peoples and cultures around the world. This five-year interdisciplinary project will investigate the peopling of South America, the last continental terra incognita (other than Antarctica) to be colonised by humans, constituting a virtually unprecedented migration of modern humans across richly diverse, empty landscapes during the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene transition. Situated at the geographical gateway to the continent, the project will investigate one of the most momentous demographic dispersals of our species into the diverse environments of north-western South America, encompassing coasts, savannahs and lowland, Sub Andean and Andean tropical forests. This process took place amidst one of the most significant climatic, environmental, and subsistence regime shifts in human history, which contributed to the extinction of megafauna, plant domestication, and today’s remarkable diversity of indigenous South American groups.Despite its geographical importance and a wealth of archaeological and palaeoecological data across its diverse environments, north-western South America has only been given cursory consideration to understand processes of human dispersion. This project will redress this imbalance by applying an innovative interdisciplinary approach that integrates state-of-art archaeology, archaeobotany, zooarchaeology, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology, ancient environmental DNA and isotope studies. The results will provide a global comparative perspective to the study of Late Pleistocene human colonisations, hunter-gatherer adaptations, the demise of megafauna and the beginning of plant cultivation and domestication. The results of the project have broader implications not only for archaeology but also for geography, palaeoclimate, palaeoecology, and molecular biology. Fields of science humanitieshistory and archaeologyhistorynatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencespalaeontologypaleoecologyagricultural sciencesagriculture, forestry, and fisheriesagriculturehorticulturehumanitieshistory and archaeologyarchaeologybioarchaeologynatural sciencesbiological sciencesmolecular biology Keywords Human colonisation Late Pleistocene archaeology palaeoclimate palaeoecology molecular biology lithic studies megafauna South America Andes Amazon Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2018-ADG - ERC Advanced Grant Call for proposal ERC-2018-ADG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme ERC-ADG - Advanced Grant Coordinator THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER Net EU contribution € 1 787 090,00 Address The queen's drive northcote house EX4 4QJ Exeter United Kingdom See on map Region South West (England) Devon Devon CC Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 1 787 090,00 Beneficiaries (6) Sort alphabetically Sort by Net EU contribution Expand all Collapse all THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER United Kingdom Net EU contribution € 1 787 090,00 Address The queen's drive northcote house EX4 4QJ Exeter See on map Region South West (England) Devon Devon CC Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 1 787 090,00 UNIVERSIDAD DE ANTIOQUIA Colombia Net EU contribution € 99 000,00 Address Calle 67 53-108 1226 Medellin See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 99 000,00 UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL DE COLOMBIA Colombia Net EU contribution € 46 125,00 Address Carrea 45 26-85 edificio uriel gutierrez quinto pi ciudad universitaria 111321 Bogota See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 46 125,00 UNIVERSIDADE DE SAO PAULO Brazil Net EU contribution € 103 125,00 Address Rua da reitoria 109 butanta 05508 900 Sao paulo sp See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 103 125,00 KOBENHAVNS UNIVERSITET Denmark Net EU contribution € 309 375,00 Address Norregade 10 1165 Kobenhavn See on map Region Danmark Hovedstaden Byen København Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 309 375,00 MAX-PLANCK-GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER WISSENSCHAFTEN EV Germany Net EU contribution € 153 875,00 Address Hofgartenstrasse 8 80539 Munchen See on map Region Bayern Oberbayern München, Kreisfreie Stadt Activity type Research Organisations Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost € 153 875,00