Doctoral Dissertation Research: Effect of Colonial Policy on Land Use

博士论文研究：殖民政策对土地利用的影响

• 批准号: 2403754
• 负责人: John Marston
• 金额: $ 3.15万
• 依托单位: Trustees of Boston University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-06-01 至 2025-05-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2403754&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Effect; Colonial

The goal of this doctoral dissertation project is to examine the relationship between land-use practices and evolving colonial power dynamics in peripheral regions of the New World such as the US Southwest. The doctoral student investigates the land-management practices implemented in response to imperial policies in colonies, identifying long-lasting legacies of colonial control manifested through land-use practices. The work integrates multiple datasets of archaeological plant remains, addressing a critical gap in the current knowledge regarding how land-use practices reflect socio-political mechanisms on the colonial frontier. Dendroanthracological (tree-ring) techniques are used to study archaeological wood charcoal, enabling the identification of specific woodland management and wood-use practices. By focusing on legacy collections, the study not only synthesizes regional paleoethnobotanical investigation and land-use reconstructions but also uses previously collected datasets to maximize preservation of archaeological sites. Dissemination of research results is accomplished through peer-reviewed journals and an open-access platform, coupled with the production of a comprehensive wood anatomy atlas. This project fosters inclusivity through student training in wood charcoal analysis.The research team analyzes and integrates archaeological seed and charcoal datasets from a series of colonial sites to study past land-use strategies and trace the diachronic environmental legacies of colonialism, including overgrazing, the construction of new environmental niches, and deforestation. The project sites are distributed across landscapes with diverse environmental and social attributes, and so represent ideal case studies to examine how communities with differing conditions coped with the challenges posed by colonial expectations and local environmental realities. The project applies dendroanthracological techniques to identify specific woodland management and wood-use practices that may have been used to maximize wood production in specific areas. Through the analysis of botanical assemblages of seeds, agricultural patterns are mapped across environmental zones and historical boundaries, contributing to a broader understanding of agricultural opportunities and constraints in the colonial Southwest.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

本博士论文项目的目标是研究美国西南部等新世界周边地区的土地利用实践与不断演变的殖民权力动态之间的关系。该博士生研究了为响应殖民地帝国政策而实施的土地管理实践，确定了通过土地使用实践体现的殖民控制的长期遗产。这项工作整合了考古植物遗骸的多个数据集，解决了当前关于土地使用实践如何反映殖民边境社会政治机制的知识中的一个关键差距。树炭学（树木年轮）技术用于研究考古木炭，从而能够识别特定的林地管理和木材使用实践。通过关注遗产收藏，该研究不仅综合了区域古民族植物学调查和土地利用重建，而且还使用以前收集的数据集来最大限度地保护考古遗址。研究成果的传播是通过同行评审的期刊和开放获取平台以及综合木材解剖图谱的制作来完成的。该项目通过木炭分析方面的学生培训来促进包容性。研究团队分析并整合了一系列殖民遗址的考古种子和木炭数据集，以研究过去的土地利用策略并追踪殖民主义的历时环境遗产，包括过度放牧、建筑新的环境利基和森林砍伐。项目地点分布在具有不同环境和社会属性的景观中，因此代表了理想的案例研究，以研究具有不同条件的社区如何应对殖民期望和当地环境现实带来的挑战。该项目应用树炭学技术来确定特定的林地管理和木材使用做法，这些做法可能用于最大限度地提高特定地区的木材产量。通过对种子植物组合的分析，绘制出跨越环境区域和历史边界的农业模式，有助于更广泛地了解殖民地西南部的农业机会和限制。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过评估被认为值得支持利用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准。