Deep-diving into the future of wetland and forest landscapes

In May 2023, Associate Professor Chelsea Budd received funding from Future Forests to apply for two research projects, one about the future of wetlands, and one about cultural heritage in forest landscapes.

Hi Chelsea, can you tell us more about who you are?

I am an Associate Professor in Archaeology at the Department of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies. My early career research interests focused on studying diet, mobility, and societal change in prehistoric societies through the application of isotope geochemistry, sociology frameworks, and statistical computer modelling. More recently, my research horizons have expanded to include safeguarding Sweden’s cultural and forestry heritage by adopting interdisciplinary methodological approaches. Currently, I am working on two research projects, which are the ones I have applied for with help from funding from Future Forests.

What are the research projects about?

The first project is called "Wetland Futures & Sustainable Forests: in situ monitoring approaches". Wetlands and peatlands are integral to the climate change debate due to their role in global greenhouse gas budgets, but there is little consideration of wetland preservation and functioning in relation to heritage and conservation. The purpose of this project is to directly assess the potential of the wetlands resource in relation to the in situ preservation of cultural heritage remains, and to determine the potential range and nature of the impacts of human activity, such as the activities of the forestry industry, on that potential.

The second project is called "Sustainable Forests and Archaeology: harnessing interdisciplinary GIS and AI approaches to ‘future-proof’ Sweden’s cultural and forestry heritage". Forest landscapes and their cultural heritage sites are being negatively affected by climate change. Current climate scenarios predict that the potential for damage in the future will increase, but Sweden lacks the governmental structures and integrated Information Communications Technology (ICT) tools to systematically assess the risks to, and prioritize the preservation of, threatened sites and monuments. The purpose of the project is to harness Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and AI approaches used in archaeological science to provide an interdisciplinary, synergetic approach to safeguarding cultural heritage (archaeology) in Sweden’s forest landscapes from the long-term effects of climate change.

What are the goals of these projects?

The goal of the first project is to, in an interdisciplinary manner, monitor and assess hydrology, soil chemistry, in situ preservation studies, soil compaction, ecology and biodiversity, and sustainability. These areas are fundamental to the research to provide a holistic understanding of human-induced impacts (whether directly from extractive industries, forestry, or factors such as climate change and the associated vegetational shifts) and to determinate the degree of impact. As such this project draws on the knowledge developed by hydrologists and soil scientists, alongside the disciplines of geomorphology, environmental and wetland archaeology, within the remit of wetlands research.

The goal of the second research project is to liaise with actors and stakeholders within the forestry environment in order to create assessment, prediction and prioritization frameworks for threatened sites and forest landscapes.

In what way do you think these research projects will be beneficial to people?

The outcomes of the first project will be of fundamental importance to a wide range of end-users (e.g., regulatory and statutory authorities, industries such as forestry, local stakeholders and communities) because the data generated will provide a baseline for the quantification of impacts on wetlands across a range of characteristics.

When it comes to the second project, it will make use of and contribute to the development of the Swedish National Infrastructure for Digital Archaeology (Swedigarch: http://swedigarch.se/) and Strategic Environmental Archaeology Database (SEAD: https://www.sead.se/) to ensure that future research and heritage management have better tools for assessing and meeting climate change threats to cultural heritage.

(What is the next step for your projects?)