This interdisciplinary conference featured climatologists, archaeologists, papyrologists, environmental, economic, and ancient historians from a diverse international community. The aim was to explore how historical and scientific analytical techniques can be used to understand causes and effects that may link socio-economic developments to climate and environmental changes.

The papers' topics range chronologically from the 8th century BCE to the 6th century CE and geographically cover Europe, the Italian peninsula, Greece, Egypt, the Eastern Mediterranean, and South Arabia and Central Asia.