AN INTEGRATED MULTI-PROXY APPROACH TO THE LATE PLEISTOCENE LANDSCAPES AND ENVIRONMENTS OF IRELAND AND SCOTLAND, AND THE POTENTIALS FOR HUMAN AND FAUNA

In order to make a tangible contribution to extant environmental datasets it is the intention that a number of cores be taken in relative proximity to known sites of Late Pleistocene activity in Scotland. The first task will be collation and curation of data attesting to the nature of development and change in Late Pleistocene landscapes and environments. It will also be necessary to profile the nature of human and faunal movement and recolonisation within landscapes, the conditions which are conducive to these processes and potential markers for these events archaeologically and environmentally. It is the intention that Late Pleistocene archaeological sites be engaged with wherever possible in regard to fieldwork, in order to expand understanding of spatial interactions with environmental contexts. The impact of this research will be profound in terms of understanding the development of early human-environment interactions and further to this the placement of recolonisations (human and faunal) temporally and situationally. Through an understanding of early impact on and relation to environments, strategies for long-term management and a deeper connection to modern landscapes can develop. This project will extend further from a purely academic output to creative outlets and hopefully a long-term visual interactive format, potentially in the form of an online model mapping potential human and faunal movement (Multiple Scenario Approach). Considering creative outputs, artistic/visual presentations of the data may be considered, in for example an illustrated narrative guide. Science communication is a passion of mine, so the development of my PhD will be documented by a blog and accompanying podcast and an information packet for stakeholders will be developed, to increase accessibility to my research. An integral aspect of the integrity of my research is accountability to FAIR Principles and dedication to the practice of open science.