Objective WaMStrIn will re-evaluate the relationship between human settlement and the changing hydrological network of the Indus area of Pakistan during the emergence of first urban centres in ancient South Asia (2500-1900 BC). The ancient Indus was the most extensive of the three so-called cradles of Old World civilisation and a number of attempts have been made to trace the network of palaeorivers that watered this region and sustained its ancient population. Using a novel combination of multi-temporal satellite remote sensing, GIS-based topographic analysis, geostatistics and network analysis WaMStrIn will overcome previous problems in the detection of ancient rivers and associated archaeological sites. In doing so WaMStrIn will provide new hypotheses and quantifiable open access data on (1) past water management, (2) the mechanism employed to cope with changing water availability and (3) the consequences of a long-term shift towards more arid conditions for South Asia's earliest large-scale, urban, and interconnected society.Water management and availability are relevant to a range of current archaeological debates, particularly those related to food security, sustainability and resilience. These issues are also directly relevant to current investigation into the impact of climate change on modern populations in regions that are becoming increasingly arid. WaMStrIn study area is core to this debate as it was intensely occupied by an urban society that was affected by a dramatic weakening of the Indian Summer Monsoon around 4200 years ago. The successful development of WaMStrIn will provide relevant new methods for the study of water management in the past and important new data for a sustainable planning and management of water in the current context of climate change towards more arid conditions. Fields of science engineering and technologymechanical engineeringvehicle engineeringaerospace engineeringsatellite technologyhumanitieshistory and archaeologyarchaeologyethnoarchaeologymedical and health scienceshealth sciencesnutritionnatural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesclimatologyclimatic changesengineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringnatural resources managementwater management Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Main Programme H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility Topic(s) MSCA-IF-2016 - Individual Fellowships Call for proposal H2020-MSCA-IF-2016 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF Coordinator THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE Net EU contribution € 183 454,80 Address TRINITY LANE THE OLD SCHOOLS CB2 1TN Cambridge United Kingdom See on map Region East of England East Anglia Cambridgeshire 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 € 183 454,80
