Welcome to our blog! 📖
Here, we share the moments that make our research journey unique — from fieldwork stories and community interactions to data dives and policy discussions. Whether we’re uncovering ancient practices, modelling patterns, or learning from traditional knowledge, every step brings us closer to understanding resilience in a changing world.
Whether we’re out collecting data, crunching numbers, or making sense of ancient clues, our team is always on the move — and sometimes just trying to make sense of it all.
Join us as we dig into data, trek through the field, and occasionally laugh at our own scientific chaos!
Yours in data and dirt,
Team AGRI-DRY🌱
From Archives to Excavations: Preparing for Archaeological Research at Ziwa
Written by – Tawanda Mushweshwe On 7 January 2026, I visited the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe (NMMZ) Headquarters in Harare…
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Joining an archaeological think tank for climate resilience in Sweden
Written by – Sara Krubeck and Paidamoyo Chingono In early January, the two of us, Sara and Paidamoyo, were invited as AGRI-DRY…
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Exploring Ziwa: first encounters with a precolonial farming landscape
Written by – Tawanda Mushweshwe On 3rd December 2025, I had my first visit to the Ziwa National Monument in the Nyanga…
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PhD candidate Mncedisi Taala defends proposal in Botswana
Last month, Doctoral Candidate 10, Mncedisi Taala, presented and defended his PhD proposal titled “How Can We Devise a More Sustainable Food…
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Unearthing Stories from Castellaccio di Lentini
Written by – Kayla Mac Conachie This September, I joined the excavation at Castellaccio di Lentini (Sicily) — an incredible experience uncovering…
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Research in motion – UPF PhDs share their summer stories
Written by – Sara Scaglia & Sara Krubeck Summer didn’t mean slowing down for our UPF Doctoral Candidates. Between conferences, research visits,…
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Latest news from Agri-Dry
AGRI-DRY call for PanAf abstracts
Submit an abstract for the PanAf Congress Session organised by AGRI-DRY! Our session is titled “People, climate, and landscape dynamics in African drylands”, encouraging cross-disciplinary discussions on human–environment interactions in the past, present, and future. Click here to submit your abstract!Abstract submission deadline: 30 March 2026Maputo, Mozambique, 26–31 July 2026 The Pan-African Archaeological Association Congress…
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AGRI-DRY call for INQUA abstracts
AGRI-DRY advertises a call for abstracts for INQUA 2027 India! Our session, titled “Adaptive Agricultural Landscapes in Drylands: Archaeology and Environmental Insights from the AGRI-DRY Network”, is organised by AGRI-DRY co-leaders Prof. Nicki Whitehouse and Prof. Marco Madella. 🔗 Submission: https://www.inquaindia2027.in/call-submissions🗓 Abstract submission deadline: 31 January 2026📍 The INQUA Congress will be held from 28 January…
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AGRI-DRY call for ASAPA abstracts
We announce a call for abstracts for the AGRI-DRY session, “Past Environments, Future Adaptation: Archaeology as a Tool for Policy Making”, at the ASAPA 2026 Conference organised by the Association of Southern African Professional Archaeologists. Poster credit: Kayla Mac Conachie 🔗 Submissions: https://asapa2026.co.za/submissions.php🗓 Abstract submission deadline: 31 January 2026📍 The conference will be held from…
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AGRI-DRY team undertake preliminary ethnographic fieldwork in Botswana
On the 18th and 19th of November 2025, AGRI-DRY Doctoral Candidates (DC 3 Sara Scaglia; DC 6 Sara Krubeck; DC 7 Thamary Mukuya; and DC 10 Mncedisi Taala) carried out preliminary ethnographic fieldwork in Eastern Botswana. They were supported by members of the AGRI-DRY Supervisory Team, namely Marco Madella, Sarah Mothulatshipi, and Lokwalo Thabeng. The…
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Fieldwork in South Africa takes place as part of the AGRI-DRY project
In mid-September, AGRI-DRY members travel to North West Province, South Africa, to core a several-thousand-year-old peatland and explore its vegetation history. While AGRI-DRY explores dryland agriculture over time, one aspect of this work involves establishing the history of land use and land cover through studying peatlands as palaeoenvironmental archives. The fieldwork in South Africa hence…
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Kayla represents AGRI-DRY at SAYAS blogging workshop
On May 8th, 2025, Kayla from the University of Salento attended the SAYAS Blogging Workshop, organized by the South African Young Academy of Science (SAYAS). The event focused on using social media to make science more accessible and relatable. Naturally, Kayla brought her A-game! When asked about her role at the event, Kayla shared,”I was…
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