Project Grant 2344657

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), under the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences program (CFDA 47.075), will support an archaeological investigation focused on understanding the environmental and social strategies that enabled the transition from hunting and gathering to farming in a dense tropical forest context. The $276,441 award to the Dominguez Hills Foundation at California State University, Dominguez Hills, a Hispanic-Serving Institution, will fund research to identify and study the earliest agricultural settlements in the region using advanced airborne laser scanning technology. A key focus is educating undergraduate students, particularly from underrepresented minority backgrounds, in scientific research methodologies through field work and professional collaboration. The project will also work to bridge the divide between academia and the broader public's understanding of the origins of modern society through public-facing media. Additionally, the grant will collect data on smaller archaeological sites to help protect them from demographic and environmental changes in the region.