Archaeologist Uses Trash to Fight Climate Change

Archaeologist Kristina Douglass views discarded materials as invaluable sources of information, providing an unfiltered look into the daily lives of past societies. Unlike historical records often shaped by elites, trash reflects the democratic, unconscious remnants of everyday people. Douglass, a MacArthur Fellow, leads research aimed at understanding how past human communities co-evolved with their environment and adapted to climate change.

Her work, primarily focused on Madagascar, seeks to leverage this historical understanding to support present-day communities facing climate instability. These communities, often on the front lines of environmental change, possess crucial generational knowledge for adaptation. Douglass advocates for elevating these local voices in sustainability policy development, asserting that their insights are essential for creating effective, long-term solutions that benefit both people and the planet.

Douglass distinguishes current climate change from historical shifts, noting the accelerated rate and intensified force driven by industrialization and overconsumption. She believes the cultural knowledge of indigenous peoples, stewards of the land for millennia, should guide climate action. The most effective strategy for mitigating climate impacts, she suggests, involves sustaining the transfer of knowledge across generations and addressing systemic inequalities.