Torben Rick
Heroy Hall, Room 444
(214)768-3542
trick@smu.edu
For more information, please visit Dr. Rick's personal homepage, here.
Historical Ecology and Marine Environments
Professor Rick's research focuses on the antiquity,
diversity, and ecology of human use of coastal regions around the world. Oceans,
beaches, and islands are some of the most spectacular environments on earth,
conjuring up images of vacation, relaxation, and retreat. For thousands of years,
the seacoast has played an important role in human cultural and biological
evolution, forming a distinct place in human history. Once thought to have been
colonized by humans only within the last 10,000 years, a variety of
archaeological evidence now suggests that seacoasts and islands were inhabited by
some of our earliest ancestors.
In modern and ancient times, the fish, shellfish, and mammals found in the world’s
oceans formed an important subsistence base. These resources have fueled our global economy in
many areas of the world. Modern and historical over-consumption of marine resources has greatly
impacted the world's oceans, however, leading to a state of crisis in coastal fisheries.
Biologists and ecologists are working to restore and regenerate many coastal areas, and in recent
years archaeologists have joined this challenge. Through the analysis of animal bones and shells
found in ancient archaeological sites, Rick's research seeks to understand how marine
environments changed through time, how people may have impacted those environments, and
ultimately how those ancient societies responded to, or avoided, such crises. These historical
ecological studies can then be used to shed light on modern remediation and management
strategies. From this perspective, archaeology, anthropology, biology, ecology, and other
disciplines form an integrated framework, building on one another to look at the sustainability
of the past, present, and future of our oceans.
Curriculum Vitae | Publications
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