Humans and the Environment

The surroundings in which people live shape the way they think, act and live together. Uncovering the mutual and reciprocal influences between humans and the environment over thousands of years is the goal that the Graduate School has set itself. The idea is located in between cultural studies and natural sciences, and incorporates molecular biology and archaeology as well as geoinformatics and art history, geophysics and isotope research, archaeology and palaeoenvironmental research. Two new associate professorships in environmental archaeology and environmental history – both of which are new research fields in Germany – complement the range of teaching offered at the Graduate School.

The doctoral students address three core topics: “Social Space and Landscape”, “Society and Reflection”, and “Mobility, Innovation and Transformation”. The focus is on the Baltic region, although some of the topics extend beyond Central Europe and through to Africa.

The participating institutions are:

• University of Kiel (host institution)
• Regional Archaeological Museum – Schloss Gottorf, Schleswig
• Leibniz Institute for Science Education, Kiel
• German Archaeological Institute, Berlin