Carla Jaimes Betancourt

Preliminary abstract: The International Meeting of Amazonian Archaeology takes place regularly at a different city in Latin America (Bel’m, Brazil – 2008, Manaus, Brazil – 2010, Quito, Ecuador 2013) and is a space for the dissemination and discussion of the most outstanding recent archaeological findings from this region. The countries historically considered as Andean (Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia) enter into dialogue with the pre-columbian past of Brazil, Venezuela, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname, thus bridging political and linguistic boundaries. Around 60 archaeologists carrying out research in the nine Amazonian countries meet to discuss topics related to the cultural development of Amazonian societies and the history of the anthropic landscapes of the region. Themes such as monumentality and large landscape transformations, the history of the domestication of plants in the Amazon forest, agricultural and fishing technologies, the influence of climate change, the development of arts and technology, and potential population movements direct the discussions, without forgetting the relationship between archaeology and the indigenous peoples who still inhabit this territory. Stimulated by new archaeological data, the discussions allow researchers to identify areas and topics that need to be investigated. The inclusive nature of the conference promotes the development of multidisciplinary projects and international collaboration.