People

Aiuvalasit collecting charcoal samples after a prescribed burn at Buffalo Trace Prairie, Champaign County Forest Preserve District

Michael Aiuvalasit, Ph.D., Lab Director and Environmental Archaeologist

Michael is an Anthropological Archaeologist with a specialty in geoarchaeology. He investigates how social institutions, built infrastructure, and land management practices influenced the resilience of communities to climate change in the past, and how historic preservation can better protect stories of adaptation into the future. His work is interdisciplinary, and incorporates archaeological, ethnographic, and paleoenvironmental data using methods from the earth sciences and geospatial analyses. He has over twenty years of experience working on applied and academic research projects across the Eastern U.S., Texas, and New Mexico, as well as in Central Mexico.

The lab employs student workers and is available for student and staff research.