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Background
The Eastern African Quaternary Research Association (EAQUA) was formed to enhance the growth of the Quaternary Science community in the eastern African region through training and promotion of collaborative research. In addition, the association was intended to facilitate active communication on Quaternary research issues and information exchange on palaeoclimate, palaeoenvironment, archaeology, palaeontology, palaeoanthropology, and geology in the region, through biannual meetings.
The first three meetings, held between 2007 and 2011 in Kampala (Uganda), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) and Zanzibar (Tanzania), brought together Quaternary scholars from eastern Africa and international researchers working in the region, who deliberated on themes related to various aspects of the Quaternary period. These workshops established that there were local and regional variations in climate over the last 2000 years, and suggested multidisciplinary approaches for better understanding, in addition to assessing the impacts of global and climate change, vulnerability and adaptations. The status of on and off shore Quaternary research over the last 100,000 years has also been discussed, elaborating on the available marine and lacustrine records, techniques and methods for Quaternary research, palaeoclimate and vegetation reconstruction as well as recent trends in climate change.
The fourth EAQUA workshop to be hosted by the National Museums of Kenya in Nanyuki, Kenya in July 2013 will highlight the research conducted for the earlier periods of the Quaternary, with specific reference to the highland areas of eastern Africa. The workshop is expected to provide a forum for exchange of research results and ideas among the eastern African Quaternary community.
Conference themes
The conference structure will include invited keynote presentations, contributed papers and posters in thematic sessions, as well as plenary discussions. The specific conference themes will include:
- Late Pleistocene-Holocene climate variability
- Quaternary rainfall variability and human-environment interactions/adaptations in East Africa
- Habitat and paleo-environmental reconstruction of pre-historic sites (paleobotany, isotopes, fauna, sedimentology)
- The Quaternary fossil and archaeological record of eastern Africa
- Climate and gobal change â impacts, adaptation and vulnerability assessment for eastern Africa
- Eastern African Quaternary geology
- Highland ecosystems
- Heritage resource governance for sustainable development
Important dates
- Deadline for submission of abstracts and support applications:April 15, 2013
- Acceptance of abstracts: May 15, 2013
- Deadline for early registration and return of completed participant forms: June 30, 2013
Meeting material
Post-meeting material