From 2020 to 2022, the Anthropocene Working Group (AWG) is coordinating a geological investigation to identify key anthropogenic signatures for the onset of a new human-led epoch: the Anthropocene. Through the identification and dating of the lower stratigraphic boundary—the so-called Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP)—traceable in various marine and terrestrial deposits the group will pragmatically consider a formal beginning of the Anthropocene, placing this new human-made epoch at the current end of a geologic timescale that encompasses 4.5 billion years of geological evolution.
The workshop takes place midway through the joint Anthropogenic Markers project, forming a crucial step in the joint production of six thematic online dossiers that help to historically contextualize the different Anthropocene markers under investigation by the AWG. The dossiers, to be issued as a special publication on the platform anthropocene-curriculum.org, do not attempt to systematically organize all markers according to their properties, but instead allow for different perspectives, framings, and approaches to be taken.
The workshop starts with a full day devoted to the AWG’s discussion on the progress made in the search for suitable GSSP candidates. This first day is only open to participants of the Anthropogenic Markers project. The following two days then focus on the future contributions to the dossiers by discussing precirculated drafts. This part of the workshop is open to registered participants.
Organizer(s): Christoph Rosol and Giulia Rispoli
Host: Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW)
With contributions by: DEPT., Bernadette Bensaude-Vincent, Adam Bobbette, Jeremy Bolen, Soraya Boudia, Kate Brown, Nina Canell, Julian Charrière, Nigel Clark, Angela Creager, Matt Edgeworth, Xandra van der Eijk, Barbara Fiałkiewicz-Kozieł, Desiree Foerster, Kim Fortun, Juan-Andres Leon Gomez, Maël GoumriI, Irka Hajdas, Nestor Herran, Brian Kent Holmes, Eva Horn, Katrin Hornek, Benhamin Johnson, Luke Keogh, John Krige, Kira Lappé, Reinhold Leinfelder, Francine McCarthy, Tania Navarro-Rodriguez, Pietro Daniel Omodeo, Jahnavi Pietro, Daniel Omodeo, Jahnavi Phalkey, Killian Quigley, Jurgen Renn, Maria Rentetzi, Giulia Rispoli, Xavier Roque, Neil Rose, Christoph Rosol, Kyoko Sato, Cristian Simonetti, Karolina Anna Sobecka, Benjamin Steininger, Juliana Ivar do Sul, Julia A. Thomas, Liz Thomas, Simon Turner, Colin Waters, Robin Watkins, Andrea Westermann, Adam Wickberg, Mark Williams, Matthew C. Wilson, Jan Zalasiewicz.
