# Doctoral Dissertation Research: Diet and Population Mobility

> **NSF 01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT** · University of California-Berkeley (CA) · $40,125

## Abstract

This doctoral dissertation project examines the impact of changes in population pressure and dietary diversification on the long-term sustainability of small-scale, self-sufficient societies. The underlying rationale for this project, grounded in empirical research in ethnobotany and ecology, suggests the implementation of multiple dietary plant staples allows food producing societies to increase and stabilize food yields. Diverse food systems can thus constitute a strategic response to episodes of demographic growth. Archaeology can further substantiate these insights because it provides subsistence and population data on the centennial and millennial scales, highlighting successful strategies that have stood the test of time. At present, the link between subsistence diversity and socio-environmental sustainability increasingly draws interdisciplinary attention, largely due to the vulnerabilities of industrial farming. Contemporary farming is predicated on the continued success of high-yielding monocultures, but the biological simplification of food systems has increased dependency on human inputs and susceptibility to change. Understanding the long-term implications of species variability in farming systems is therefore of value in the United States today.
 
The project addresses these issues by looking at two research questions in the context of an archaeological habitation site where both farming and plant foraging took place. The project first determines the extent of 

## Key facts

- **NSF award ID:** 2514435
- **Awardee organization:** University of California-Berkeley (CA)
- **SAM.gov UEI:** GS3YEVSS12N6
- **PI:** Junko Habu
- **Primary program:** 01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
- **All programs:** ARCHAEOLOGY, GRADUATE INVOLVEMENT
- **Estimated total:** $40,125
- **Funds obligated:** $40,125
- **Transaction type:** Standard Grant
- **Period:** 06/01/2025 → 05/31/2027

## Primary source

NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2514435

## Citation

> US National Science Foundation, Award 2514435, Doctoral Dissertation Research: Diet and Population Mobility. Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-06 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nsf/2514435. Licensed CC0.

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