The emergence of Homo sapiens' behavioural complexity represents a fundamental milestone in the evolution of humankind. Still, the causes of this critical transformation remain debated. For the African Middle Stone Age (MSA, ~300 000–40 000 years) a key question is whether and how climate variability contributed to the increasing behavioural complexity in modern humans. However, behavioural-environmental hypotheses remain untestable because the existing palaeoclimatic datasets are spatially, stratigraphically, and causally disconnected from the archaeological record. PIONEER will overcome this impediment by developing a new analytical framework that allows testing of previously untestable hypotheses and thereby advances our understanding of human behavioural evolution. To achieve this, cutting-edge analytical (leaf wax isotope analyses) and computational approaches (climate- and agent-based modelling (ABM)) will be combined with African archaeology. Fundamental to my approach are high-resolution climate records from within the archaeology-bearing sediments, thus directly connecting environmental- and archaeological records. PIONEER will test behavioural-environmental hypotheses by interlinking several activities: 1) establish unprecedented high-resolution datasets of past vegetation and palaeohydrology changes from five key cave sites, inhabited by early Homo sapiens, located along the South African coast 2) create a high-resolution spatial representation of the environments experienced by our ancestors from novel climate simulations 3) explore likelihoods for different behavioural-environmental scenarios via ABM Although PIONEER focuses on the South African MSA, my approach is applicable to most archaeological timeframes and locations. Consequently, PIONEER will transform future studies of climate-human interactions, clarifying key aspects of early human behaviour.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::1e48b90c2cf356cda54c06e7aa70e55d&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::1e48b90c2cf356cda54c06e7aa70e55d&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
Arctic sea ice decline is the exponent of the rapidly transforming Arctic climate. The ensuing local and global implications can be understood by studying past climate transitions, yet few methods are available to examine past Arctic sea ice cover, severely restricting our understanding of sea ice in the climate system. The decline in Arctic sea ice cover is a ‘canary in the coalmine’ for the state of our climate, and if greenhouse gas emissions remain unchecked, summer sea ice loss may pass a critical threshold that could drastically transform the Arctic. Because historical observations are limited, it is crucial to have reliable proxies for assessing natural sea ice variability, its stability and sensitivity to climate forcing on different time scales. Current proxies address aspects of sea ice variability, but are limited due to a selective fossil record, preservation effects, regional applicability, or being semi-quantitative. With such restraints on our knowledge about natural variations and drivers, major uncertainties about the future remain. I propose to develop and apply a novel sea ice proxy that exploits genetic information stored in marine sediments, sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA). This innovation uses the genetic signature of phytoplankton communities from surface waters and sea ice as it gets stored in sediments. This wealth of information has not been explored before for reconstructing sea ice conditions. Preliminary results from my cross-disciplinary team indicate that our unconventional approach can provide a detailed, qualitative account of past sea ice ecosystems and quantitative estimates of sea ice parameters. I will address fundamental questions about past Arctic sea ice variability on different timescales, information essential to provide a framework upon which to assess the ecological and socio-economic consequences of a changing Arctic. This new proxy is not limited to sea ice research and can transform the field of paleoceanography.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda__h2020::e4ca4392b1e1f9a8c77b7a2315c6b17a&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda__h2020::e4ca4392b1e1f9a8c77b7a2315c6b17a&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
The Arctic sea-ice is an important ecosystem that guarantees food security and plays a key role in the regulation of the global climate, affecting the livelihoods of people beyond the Arctic region. The Arctic sea-ice is shrinking, and studies predict an Arctic sea-ice free summer by 2050. The impacts of a sea-ice free Arctic on the climate system and human activities are little understood, mainly due to the limited availability of tools to reconstruct and understand the Arctic sea-ice history. State-of-the-art sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) analyses offer novel solutions to better understand sea-ice ecosystems. ARCTISTIC proposes to i) design and test novel molecular tools (ddPCR assays) to trace sea-ice associated taxa in marine sediments, ii) validate the new ddPCR proxies against established tools for sea-ice reconstruction (lipid biomarkers) and iii) assess the impact of sea-ice changes on biodiversity using metabarcoding analysis on the same sediment samples, and bioinformatics. ARCTISTIC research activities will deliver a novel and innovative toolbox for sea-ice reconstructions. Tools and data will be made available in open access publications, with the aim to accelerate Arctic sea-ice reconstructions beyond ARCTISTIC. ARCTISTIC presents an excellent opportunity for the exchange of the latest skills and approaches for sea-ice reconstruction between myself and NORCE (Norway), with a secondment at AWI (Germany). ARCTISTIC will allow me to develop new skills in sedaDNA methods, palaeoceanographic proxy development and bioinformatics, expand my research network and gain a stronger understanding of Arctic ecosystems and sea-ice history. I will also develop transferrable skills in science communication and project management to ensure a future career path as an independent researcher.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::abeedbe143fde9f7384b558d312499e6&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::abeedbe143fde9f7384b558d312499e6&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
Earth system models (ESM) are widely used to predict future climate and inform policy (e.g. IPCC). Recent research suggests that ESM do a poor job predicting future climate because they exclude microbial biogeochemical cycling and soil heterogeneity (e.g. texture), which affect the climate system. As an ecosystem ecologist with a strong background in microbial drivers of biogeochemistry, my primary goal is to use data from a robust global study measuring the effect of climate change on ecosystem processes to enhance the next generation of ESM making them more accurate and relevant to global policy. To achieve this goal I have developed key collaborations. Dr. H. Lee is an expert ecological modeler with an interest in enhancing ESM. NorESM is a leading ESM developed in Norway and used in many international modelling programs e.g. IPCC. Dr. A. Classen manages a 10 site global network measuring the ecosystem level impacts of warming. Dr. W. Wieder has initiated the development of the Microbial Mineral Carbon Stabilization (MiMiCS) model, which considers microbial drivers and soil heterogeneity; however this module requires verification and integration into ESM. My objectives are to (1) Train at the with Dr. Lee and develop ESM simulations for our 10 sites, (2) Generate a field based dataset with the help of Dr. Classen and (3) Compare simulations and field data to verify and enhance MiMiCS and (4) Integrate the newly enhanced MiMiCS into NorESM. During this action I will enhance my career by becoming a key user of cutting-edge ESM, furthering international collaborations, and enhancing European based ESM. Moreover, I will transfer my knowledge of biogeochemistry and ecosystem ecology to model developers and scientists internationally with the goal of creating synergies. The end goal of this action is to ultimately improve our ability to model future climates bringing our predicted climate scenarios closer to reality in order to better inform key policy.
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda__h2020::c970d285722c542a0b864afd671a5062&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda__h2020::c970d285722c542a0b864afd671a5062&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
The Arctic Ocean is turning blue. Abrupt Arctic warming and amplification is driving rapid sea ice decline and irreversible deglaciation of Greenland. The already emerging, substantial consequences for the planet and society are intensifying and yet, model-based projections lack validatory consensus. To date, we cannot anticipate how a blue Arctic responds to and will amplify an increasingly warmer future climate, nor how it will impact the wider planet and society. Climate projections are inconclusive as we critically lack key Arctic geological archives that preserve the answers. This “Arctic Challenge” of global significance can only be addressed by investigating processes, consequences, and impact of past “greenhouse” (warmer than present) states. The timeliness of i2B is tied into retrieval of revolutionary, new Arctic geological archives of past warmth and key breakthroughs in climate model performance that will be integrated in a concerted framework beyond state-of-the-art. i2B will deliver a ground-breaking, synergistic framework to answer the central question: “Why and what were the global ramifications of a “blue” (ice-free) Arctic during past warmer-than-present-climates?” This will be addressed through three connected, cross-disciplinary objectives integrating the expertise, knowledge, and skill-sets of three PIs and their different Arctic paleo-climate and modelling teams. i2B will quantify cryosphere (sea ice, land ice) change in a warmer world (O1) that will form the scientific basis for understanding the dynamics of Arctic cryosphere and ocean changes (O2), to enable quantitative assessment of the impact of Arctic change on ocean biosphere, climate extremes and society (O3) that will underpin future cryosphere-inclusive IPCC assessments. i2B will solve the “Arctic Challenge” with the synergistic multiplier of the 3 PIs` expert capabilities providing pioneering knowledge on how a blue Arctic impacts Earth’s climate during greenhouse climate states
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::6ddac74e26c8609a07c2ff6622d507ee&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<div id="oa_widget"></div>');
document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.openaire.eu/index.php?option=com_openaire&view=widget&format=raw&projectId=corda_____he::6ddac74e26c8609a07c2ff6622d507ee&type=result"></script>');
-->
</script>