Exploring societal responses to past climate changes

Researchers from history, archaeology, environmental and climate sciences of the universities of Bern and Yale organized the Interdisciplinary Conference "Climate of the past and societal responses to environmental changes" in Bern in June 2024. In 2014, the University of Bern, in collaboration with the Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (OCCR) and PAGES, organized the "Culture, Climate and Environment Interactions at Prehistoric Wetland Sites" conference in Bern. Similarly, in 2019, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Yale University, New Haven, came together to host the "Climate and Society in Ancient Worlds: Diversity in Collapse and Resilience" conference in Brussels. While the 2014 and 2019 conferences primarily examined prehistoric sites and the ancient history of the Mediterranean, respectively, the 2024 conference aimed to provide a more comprehensive framework, exploring the broader theme of societal responses to historical climate changes and the evolution of societies, institutions and economies in both prehistoric and historical contexts.