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Background
The West African Quaternary Research Association (WAQUA) was created in 2009 at the international conference of Ibadan (Nigeria) by Dr Izuchukwu Mike Akaegbobi.
As the sub-regional branch of International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA), WAQUA aims to promote collaboration and synergy among Quaternary Paleoscientists (Geologists, archaeologists, geographers, botanists, ecologists, paleontologists and anthropologists) of West Africa.
Since its creation, WAQUA has so far organized three international conferences: Ibadan (Nigeria) in 2009, Cotonou (Benin) in 2010 and Accra (Ghana) in 2012. Those conferences enabled West African Quaternary Paleoscientists to share the results on their investigations.
Two years after the last conference, WAQUA is planning to gather again Quaternary Paleoscientists of West Africa plus those from Chad, Cameroon, and Central African Republic to discuss, share their results and visions on an important topic: “Quaternary Fluvio-lacustrine environments and Human settlements in West Africa”.
Home of Africa's third and fifth most important rivers (Niger and Senegal Rivers) plus numerous smaller rivers (Gambia, Volta, Comoe Rivers) and many lakes (lakes Chad, Bosumtwi, lakes of the Niger Inland delta), issues relating to West African Quaternary ecological and geomorphological landscapes and human settlement are highly related to these water-providing facilities.
In addition to providing waterways and food through agriculture, herding and fishing, it's necessary to note that many species originated from these systems (i.e. the African rice: oryza glaberrima) and since the late Pleistocene, through the Holocene period and historical times human have settled along lacustrine and fluvial complexes. The discovery of Homo Asselar in the fossil valley of the Tilemsi in the southern Sahara and the birth and development of West Africa's most powerful empires and kingdoms in the valleys of these rivers (Ghana, Mali and Songhay empires, Segou, Macina, Kanem-Bornu, Benin and Ife kingdoms) attest to the importance of these systems to human settlement.
Numerous fluvial and lacustrine deposits testify the presence of such river systems, current and past. Such deposits contain important proxies that can be used to decipher the complex paleoclimates, paleohydrological regimes and paleoecological assemblages as well as species of the regions.
Program
The official languages for the Conference are French and English with simultaneous translation during the plenary and some of the parallel sessions.
The Conference includes invited review presentations, contributed papers in thematic sessions based on the themes of the five working groups.
The Conference subthemes include:
1. Fluvio-lacustrine sediments and their paleoclimate and paleoecological significance in West Africa.
2. Past and contemporary human settlements in relations to Fluvio-lacustrine systems.
3. Paleoecological evidences from Fluvio-lacustrine deposits.
4. Current environmental issues arising on the use of Fluvio‐lacustrine systems.
5. The methods of research of Quaternary Fluvio-‐lacustrine complexes in West Africa.
Also skill development for WAQUA young and early career professionals and Ph.D and M.Sc. students in the area of project design, field planning and report writing.
The conference is open to everyone, especially paleoscientists and scientists working in fluvial and lacustrine environments, current human settlements and the dynamics of human settlements during the Quaternary particularly in West Africa, as well as archeologists, botanists and paleobotanists, environmental scientists, policy makers, geographers,
geologists, biologists, historians, ecologists and environmental scientists. Young scientists’ participation is highly encouraged. Some financial suppport may be available in certain circumstances. Refer to first circular below.
Important dates
First Announcement: Call for abstracts and submission of Abstracts March 2014
Deadline for submission of abstracts: July 31, 2014
Acceptance of abstracts: August 15, 2014
Deadline for registration: August 20, 2014
More information
For more information on the programme, financial support, the first call for abstracts, registration, visa, accommodation, registration costs and abstract submission refer to the 1st circular below:
Submitting abstracts / Registering
Abstracts will be accepted for oral or poster presentations. Please indicate preference when submitting. Abstracts are to be submitted by email as attached file (in MS Word format) to the Local Organizers using the email addresses: ndjijacques@icloud.com, izumike1970@gmail.com, yafid2@yahoo.fr
Local Organizers
Dr N’dji dit Jacques DEMBELE (ndjijacques@icloud.com)
Dr. Daouda Keita (keitadaou@gmail.com)
Dr. Boulaye Keita (keitaboulaye@yahoo.fr)