Research summary
Archaeologists have various tools to help them understand our past. For example, they can perform isotope analysis on human skeletons to determine where a person lived and what the climate was like while they were alive. As Canada Research Chair in Archaeological Sciences, Dr. Michael Richards is using isotope analysis and radiocarbon dating in two research projects.
In one, he and his team are collaborating with Indigenous communities in British Columbia to analyze human remains (ancestors) that were removed from their territories before the remains are repatriated for reburial. This work involves First Nations communities as participants, and will support healing and reconciliation. In the other project, Richards’ team aims to reconstruct the province’s environmental and glacial history by examining megafauna in BC dating from 50,000 to 10,000 years ago, with a focus on mammoths. Both projects will provide a deeper knowledge of BC’s past in order to inform a better future.