Department of Anthropology Facebook Page
Originally Posted: November 15, 2017
“Rachel’s research examines the affects of population aggregation on food acquisition behavior.
Food security, the availability of and access to safe and healthy food, is a key question in global social theory and a primary concern for developing nations. As the world’s population increases, longitudinal data is necessary to understand how best to measure food insecurity in modern communities and to predict, prepare for, and respond to future trends in food availability and access as the environment changes. Archaeology is perfectly poised to examine how communities in the past collectively managed crucial animal protein resources and how such practices can lead to food sovereignty (the democratic production and distribution of food) and enduring traditions over time.
Under the guidance of Dr. B. Sunday Eiselt, Rachel Burger will investigate how Ancestral Pueblo animal management practices ensured food security during a period of rapid population growth in the northern Rio Grande region of New Mexico starting in the early AD 1300s. This research has far-reaching implications for understanding human responses to food scarcity in prehistoric and contemporary societies during periods of environmental and social change and can inform present-day animal conservation efforts.”
For more information on Rachel’s project click here.