Titre : Weather Landscapes and Archaeology: Material Weathering Practices and Tangible Climates Auteurs : Nik Petek-Sargeant, Paul J. Lane, Revue : Archaeology, Society and Environment Numéro : Issue 1:
Résilience and Landscape Volume : 2 Date : 2021/01/25 DOI : 10.21494/ISTE.OP.2022.0855 ISSN : 2752-4507 Résumé : Climate and climate change can be impenetrable statistical concepts and the sometimes hegemonic scientific narratives around them can make them seem the purview of specialists, while at the same time create an epistemic, geographic and temporal distance between the individual and possible future consequences. However, the climate has already changed and communities throughout the world have most closely experienced it through weather. Weather is the medium through which the statistical reality of climate is felt immediately, is re-socialised, given cultural meanings and functions, and through which long-term environmental knowledge is gathered. Communities build social institutions through which they make long-term weather and climate manageable. Moreover, these experiences are part of identity, local histories and landscapes, key themes that effective climate discussions need to include. Archaeology, with its broad audiences and histories of resilience, has the potential to be an effective tool in climate change messaging. Its focus on local narratives and the material outcomes of human experiences goes beyond the economic discussions surrounding climate change, making it a social issue. In this paper we discuss why weather needs to become more prominent in archaeological narratives and discuss the ways weather can be directly or indirectly included in archaeological analyses and interpretations. Although climate research has been prominent in archaeology, an explicit focus on weather has been almost completely absent. By highlighting weather-centred materialities and practices in the past on the East Africa coast at Kilwa Kisiwani, we show how experiences of weather shape daily life, the built environment and social networks and how it makes the consequences of climate change much more tangible. Archaeologies of weather offer the chance to make archaeology a key partner in projects addressing community values around climate and environment through tangible and relatable components. Éditeur : ISTE OpenScience