The “Environments Through Time” course at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is currently underway for our MSc Biological Science and MSc Earth Science students. As part of the first week of the course we took advantage of two of our current MSc research students (Chiara Rainio and Bouwe Groeneveld) and two visiting researchers (Victoria Rainis and Trevor Hill) to give the students an insight into past environmental change in Africa.
Chiara and Bouwe were both doing the final presentations for their research project. Chiara has been looking at the relationship between African megaherbivores and spores of coprophilous fungi, while Bouwe has been working with our collaborators at the University of KwaZulu-Natal to explore the last c. 2000 years of environmental change in the Drakensberg. Both did a great job – so well done them!
Victoria is visiting UvA from George Washington University where she is working for her PhD on the history of hominin fire use in Kenya with David Braun. She presented some preliminary findings from her research into fires past and present in eastern Africa. Trevor provided a broad insight into environmental change and land management in the Drakensberg (past and present) and highlighted exciting opportunities for more students to get involved with his research program.
- Chiara Rainio (MSc researcher, UvA) Dung-fungal spores and big herbivores in Kenya and Dutch zoo’s: A closer look
- Bouwe Groeneveld (MSc researcher, UvA) Reconstructing vegetation and herbivore dynamics at Giants Castle, South Africa: A palynological record from the Meander Stream wetland
- Victoria Rainis (PhD researcher, George Washington University, USA) Reconstructing Early Pleistocene fire: Insights from morphometric and spectral analysis of charcoals from the Koobi Fora Formation, East Turkana, Kenya
- Trevor Hill (Professor of Palaeoecology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa) Past environmental change in the Drakensberg new sites and opportunities
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