Some of the instructors and participants to the International Summer School
“Wood and charcoals in Mediterranean forest ecology: anatomical identification and
functional traits to interpret past and current climate changes”
The Summer School provided basic, innovative, and transdisciplinary knowledge on different aspects of wood and charcoals analysis. It was focused on the study of wood anatomy, providing knowledge and tools to study and interpret environmental data inferred from wood and charcoals stored in natural and archaeological contexts in the Mediterranean area. In particular the summer school showed how a single sample of ancient wood/charcoal can provide information about past climate, human impact, forest history, historical biogeography, dynamics of wood formation in response to human and/or climatic factors in the past.
The Organizing Committee was formed by Veronica De Micco, Gaetano Di Pasquale and by early-career scientists: Alessia D’Auria, Chiara Amitrano and Nicola Damiano from the Dept. of Agricultural Sciences of the University of Naples Federico II. The Secretariat was formed by Stefania Cuocolo, Mariangela Fischetti and Adriana Forlani who were precious in supporting all administrative and logistic issues.
The Summer School was held under the joint auspices of the EGU (European Geophysics Union), the International Association of Wood Anatomists (IAWA), the Association of Tree-ring Research (ATR), the Dept. of Agricultural Sciences and MUSA of the University of Naples Federico II, the Società Botanica Italiana (SBI), the Società Italiana di Selvicoltura ed Ecologia Forestale (SISEF), the Società Italiana di Ecologia (SItE), the Accademia Italiana di Scienze Forestali, and The Parco Archeologico di Ercolano.
The School was held as hybrid event, both in presence and on-line for students having limitations in travelling due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The practical activities were performed in a way assuring the virtual participation: part of the activities were recorded and then shown through Microsoft Teams, while others were performed directly in live streaming.
The very full and intensive program consisted of theory, field-work training and hands-on laboratory sessions where the students had the opportunity to analyse their own samples.
The organization of this Summer School was demanding and very intensive, but notwithstanding the difficulties and logistic constraints, the feedback received from Instructors and Participants were very enthusiastic and positive.
We promise that we will be back soon with a second edition!
Veronica De Micco, Gaetano Di Pasquale, Alessia D’Auria,
Chiara Amitrano, Nicola Damiano, Italy
