Socio-Ecological Entanglement in Tropical Societies (SETS)
Umbrella Project
Mission Statement
The ultimate goal of SETS is to promote the cross-cultural, transdisciplinary examination of the tropical experience, past and present, as a means to explore resilience and vulnerability to changing socio-ecological circumstances.
Current Focus
The IRAW@Bagan project will generate an integrated socio-ecological history for residential patterning, agricultural practices, and water management at the Medieval Burmese (Bama) capital of Bagan, Myanmar (11th to 14th century CE) across a range of significant ecological, climatic, economic, socio-political, and religious changes. This objective will be achieved through a settlement archaeology study within the peri-urban (mixed urban-rural) settlement zone immediately surrounding Bagan’s regal-ritual epicenter, which is still clearly defined by remnants of its original walls and moat. The importance of the proposed program of survey, excavations, and geo-spatial inquiry is grounded in the fact that our current understanding of Bagan society continues to be biased towards its upper echelons, namely its high-ranking nobles and religious institutions.
A settlement archaeology study within Bagan’s peri-urban zone will:
- generate a more nuanced understanding of Bagan as a dynamic capital city;
- provide insights into the unique characteristics of early urbanism in the tropics; and,
- contribute to considerations of resilience and vulnerability in contemporary tropical metropolises.
For more information, please contact:
Gyles Iannone
Life & Health Sciences DNA C213 ext. 7453
giannone@trentu.ca