The Project

Human evolution is understood as a process of cultural expansions that began over three million years ago with the manufacture of stone tools. This innovation enabled expanded and modular tool use and established a cultural realm characterized by more intense social and material interactions, environmental relationships, and a growing need for meaning. This development unfolds through interconnected forms of expansion: the widening of cultural performances and the expansion of the resource base. New technologies unlock additional resources but simultaneously generate new needs and interactions between humans and the environment, thereby creating a complex network of cultural forms of expression.

The research project examines these processes from a systemic perspective, covering the period from three million to 20,000 years ago in Africa and Eurasia. It is based on the multidisciplinary ROAD database—featuring GIS capabilities—which integrates archaeological, fossil, and environmental data. The findings are consolidated into a digital atlas of human-environment evolution and analyzed through an interdisciplinary approach.

Discover ROAD 

An Introduction to the Project "ROCEEH" (YouTube) (external link)