Format: Paper presentations with discussion
Convenors:
Catherine J. Frieman
School of Archaeology and Anthropology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
catherine.frieman@anu.edu.au
Bastien Llamas
School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Australia
bastien.llamas@adelaide.edu.au
Laura Weyrich
Department of Anthropology, Penn State University, USA
lsw132@psu.edu
To date, much palaeogenomic research has been driven by the interests, disciplinary norms, and key research questions of population genetics and evolutionary biology. As the field has matured methodologically and expanded significantly, archaeologists, historians and social anthropologists, among others, are contributing to developments that go beyond the interpretation of ancient DNA (aDNA) results. A large part of this contribution has taken the form of critique, and has had profound impacts on the ethics, practice, and research frameworks in which much of the world’s aDNA research is being undertaken. In this session, we ask: what next? Thousands of data points are now widely available for research, analytical software and technical expertise are increasingly accessible, and various constituent communities, chief among them Indigenous and other descendant communities, are insisting on a greater say in the use of their data and how it should be interpreted. Here, we invite participants to articulate what we are calling ‘aDNA futures’, that is, new research questions, sampling agendas, methods, practices of collaboration, applications (e.g., repatriation, management of cultural artefacts and natural resources), and knowledge co-creation. These can emerge from existing collaborations or disciplinary knowledge, be goals towards which we should work, or reflect local practices and research strategies often drowned out in the flood of papers and data from major research centres.
Papers:
Co-designing Sedimentary Ancient DNA Investigations at Aboriginal Archaeological Sites
Dawn Lewis, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, University of Adelaide, Australia; Summer Internship for Indigenous Peoples in Genomics (SING Australia), Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Adelaide, Australia
Vilma Perez and Bastien Llamas, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, University of Adelaide, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Adelaide, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous and Environmental Histories and Futures (CIEHF), Australian National University, Australia
Sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) is increasingly being included in palaeogenomic studies, due to the enormous potential to recover genomic information of past organisms, ranging from microbes to humans. However, like other forms of environmental DNA, sedaDNA research has received little ethical consideration. With the exception of targeted human DNA research from metagenomes, there is virtually no oversight with regard to the use, storage and sovereignty of sedimentary ancient genetic data. From an Indigenous perspective, this could lead to neo-colonial harm and mistrust. Here, we address this issue in the context of Australia, where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are deeply connected to Country—what they consider their ancestral home and have a responsibility to care for, and which encompasses the natural and spiritual worlds. This connectedness requires researchers to pause and consider all the genomic information found in sedaDNA—including human and non-human—as Indigenous DNA in its own right. We propose that addressing these challenges requires careful co-design and integration of Indigenous knowledges into sedaDNA research.
Can Engaged Communities Speak in Ancient DNA Research? Mapping the Past, Present and Futures of Community Engagement in Human Palaeogenomics
Francois Romijn, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow–Global Fellowship; Deakin University, Australia
Sabina Cvecek, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellow; Field Museum of Natural History & Austrian Academy of Sciences
To date, scholars have paid limited attention to social aspects of aDNA beyond ethical guidelines, and beyond the lab. Thus far, most of the discussion on the implications for local stakeholders is carried out in the perspective of the ethics of human palaeogenomics and its focus on the prevention of harms. This set of scholarly work has continuously stressed the lack of engagement as a leading point of criticism. This paper aims at mapping the reality of “engaging communities” in human palaeogenomics from an STS and/or anthropological perspective. Based on a systematic literature review, engaging communities effectively means different things for scientists. We explore the rationale for community engagement based on scientific (lines of research/questions asked; involvement of present-day DNA samples), socio-political (types/status of communities (non-)engaged in their national context; historicity of scientists/communities relationship), and institutional factors (funding schemes; regulatory framework). A critical look into past and present practices enables us to address whether and to what extent exposed communities can speak in aDNA research. This allows us to propose alternative ways—aware of social implications at play—to investigate past populations’ mobilities, kinship relations, and other results based on aDNA research in the future.
Critical Collaborations in Palaeogenomics
Emma Kowal, Deakin University, Australia
Catherine J. Frieman, The Australian National University, Australia
Francois Romijn, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow–Global Fellowship; Deakin University, Australia
Findings from the rapidly growing field of ancient DNA science (aDNA) are increasingly contributing to scientific and popular debates about human and non-human origins, mobilities and migration, social organisation, and health and disease. aDNA research teams have been multidisciplinary from their inception, involving geneticists, statisticians, modelling experts, and archaeologists. However, the recent wide reach of aDNA across new academic fields, and into many contested scientific and popular debates, has led archaeogeneticists to collaborate with increasingly diverse disciplines across the span of the sciences (e.g. palaeontology, conservation biology, microbiology, geochemistry), and the humanities and social sciences (e.g. archaeology, anthropology, philosophy, history, bioethics), as well as members of Indigenous and descendent communities. This paper presents an overview of new scholarship examining the stakes and implications of interdisciplinary knowledge production in aDNA science, ranging from detailed examinations of specific interdisciplinary controversies to continent-wide reviews of research practices. The spaces between disciplines can generate misconceptions about meanings, values, and goals that can derail interdisciplinary and community collaborations. But these discrepancies can also fuel new understandings of our respective disciplines and inspire aDNA researchers to ensure their work has the greatest and most positive impact on our understanding of the past.
Integrating Indigenous Knowledges in Ancient Environmental Genomics Research
Vilma Pérez, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, University of Adelaide, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous and Environmental Histories and Futures (CIEHF), Australian National University, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Adelaide, Australia
Dawn Lewis, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, University of Adelaide, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Adelaide, Australia; Summer Internship for Indigenous Peoples in Genomics (SING Australia), Australia
Bastien Llamas, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, University of Adelaide, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous and Environmental Histories and Futures (CIEHF), Australian National University, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (CABAH), University of Adelaide, Australia
This paper explores the potential of sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA; i.e., environmental DNA preserved in sediments) as a complementary palaeoecological tool to gain insights into past ecosystems in Australia. When integrated with Indigenous Knowledges, this approach can help us better understand the environmental history of Australia while respecting the deep connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have to Country. Drawing on research case studies developed at Aboriginal archaeological sites, we demonstrate the importance and benefits of this integrative approach for sedaDNA research. We highlight that co-design should be incorporated at every stage of the research process to ensure findings are meaningfully contextualised within Indigenous oral histories and, importantly, that the values and needs of Indigenous stakeholders are recognised and respected. We also discuss the challenges found along the way and reflect on key lessons learned to help strengthen this approach in future research.
Paleogenomics: A Tool at the Service of Archaeology? A Pioneering Study in the Iberian Peninsula
Alba Petit-Castellví, Grup de Recerca del Quaternari, GRQ-SERP; IAUB, Institute of Archaeology of the University of Barcelona; SERP. Seminari d’Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques, Dept of History and Archaeology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Concepció Castellana and Remei Bardera, CIPAG, Col·lectiu per la Investigació de la Prehistòria i l’Arqueologia de Garraf-Ordal, Begues, Spain
Ferran Antolín, CIPAG, Col·lectiu per la Investigació de la Prehistòria i l’Arqueologia de Garraf-Ordal, Begues, Spain; Division of Natural Sciences, German Archaeological Institute, Berlin, Germany; Integrative Prehistory and Archaeological Science, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
Pablo Martínez, SERP. Seminari d’Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques. Department of History and Archaeology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Elicínia Fierro, Centre d’Estudis Beguetans, Begues, Spain
Álvaro Yegros, DIDPATRI. Departament de Didàctiques Aplicades. University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Manuel Edo, CIPAG, Col·lectiu per la Investigació de la Prehistòria i l’Arqueologia de Garraf-Ordal, Begues, Spain
Joan Daura Luján, Grup de Recerca del Quaternari, GRQ-SERP; IAUB, Institute of Archaeology of the University of Barcelona; SERP. Seminari d’Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques; Dept of History and Archaeology, Barcelona, Spain
Pablo Librado, Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC – Universitat Pompeu Fabra), Barcelona, Spain
Eva Fernández-Domínguez, Dept of Archaeology, Durham University, UK
Over the last three decades, studies based on ancient DNA have provided vital information about humanity’s genetic composition and the foundations of genetic diversity on a phylogeographic level. Today, thanks to collaborations with leading laboratories dedicated exclusively to ancient DNA, substantial funding, and the automation of laboratory processes that have significantly reduced costs, the number of archaeological projects incorporating genetic analyses as a key component is growing exponentially. The challenge lies in the fact that funerary remains have been used repeatedly in macrocontinental studies aimed at describing large-scale migrations and biocultural identities, with little to no consideration of the archaeological context (Bickle and Hofmann 2022).
Recently, a parallel line of research has emerged, focusing on multidisciplinary and microregional studies where archaeologists play a central role (see, for example, Papac et al. 2021). Multiproxy approaches involving DNA, stable isotopes, osteobiographies, taphonomy, and other techniques remain rare. However, the information they can provide is essential for understanding past social structures and addressing contemporary challenges.
This communication will introduce a pioneering project involving human palaeogenomics, that incorporates these new perspectives through a case study on Neolithic communities in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula: the westernmost point of the Neolithic expansion in the Mediterranean route.