John Walker

John Walker is an Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida (UCF), part of the College of Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania (1999) and has been at UCF since 2006. His research focuses on political/social organization, landscape archaeology, and pre-Columbian agricultural systems in the Amazon Basin, Andes, and Bolivia. He investigates how ancient societies engineered landscapes, challenging perceptions of the Amazon as 'pristine.'

Key research themes include:

• Pre-Columbian raised-field agriculture and environmental management
• Common pool resource systems in Amazonian societies
• GIS applications for landscape analysis
• Historical ecology of the Llanos de Mojos region

Teaching includes Environmental Anthropology, Amazonian Archaeology, and Landscape Archaeology courses. Collaborative projects like the GIS Graduate Certificate at UCF emphasize applied archaeological methodologies. His work bridges archaeology with contemporary environmental issues, emphasizing long-term human-environment interactions.

Notable contributions include the book *Island, River, and Field* (UNM Press) and leadership in the ProSIGAB archaeological GIS project. Ongoing research explores pre-Columbian fire management and flood control systems in Amazonia.