Climate change and the deteriorating archaeological and environmental archives of the Arctic

• Published in: Antiquity
• Main Authors: Hollesen, Jørgen, Callanan, Martin, Dawson, Tom, Fenger-Nielsen, Rasmus, Friesen, T. Max, Jensen, Anne M., Markham, Adam, Martens, Vibeke V., Pitulko, Vladimir V., Rockman, Marcy
• Other Authors: University of St Andrews. School of History, University of St Andrews. Scottish Oceans Institute
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: Archaeological mitigation strategies; Arctic; Climate change; Conservation; Heritage management; CC Archaeology; Archaeology; Arts and Humanities(all); T-NDAS; SDG 13 - Climate Action; CC; Greenland; Markham; Norway; permafrost
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10023/15577; https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2018.8

Hollesen and Fenger-Nielsen thank VELUX FONDEN (33813) and the Danish National Research Foundation (CENPERM DNRF100) for financial support, as well as colleagues at the National Museum of Denmark and Greenland National Museum. Callanan thanks the Norwegian Research Council (Miljø 2015) for post-doctoral funding. Dawson thanks Historic Environment Scotland. Markham thanks the J.M. Kaplan Fund, the Barr Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Martens thanks The Research Council of Norway for funding project 212900. Pitulko thanks the Russian Science Foundation for supporting project 16-18-10265-RNF. The cold, wet climate of the Arctic has led to the extraordinary preservation of archaeological sites and materials that offer important contributions to the understanding of our common cultural and ecological history. This potential, however, is quickly disappearing due to climate-related variables, including the intensification of permafrost thaw and coastal erosion, which are damaging and destroying a wide range of cultural and environmental archives around the Arctic. In providing an overview of the most important effects of climate change in this region and on archaeological sites, the authors propose the next generation of research and response strategies, and suggest how to capitalise on existing successful connections among research communities and between researchers and the public. Publisher PDF Peer reviewed