Patrick Faulkner

Associate Professor Patrick Faulkner is a zooarchaeologist at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, The University of Sydney, specializing in human-environment interactions in tropical environments. As a coastal archaeologist and specialist archaeomalacologist, he has conducted collaborative research across Australasia, the Pacific, Sri Lanka, Oman, and eastern African islands. He is a member of the Sydney Environment Institute and The Vere Gordon Childe Centre.

Dr. Faulkner's research focuses on coastal palaeoeconomies with emphasis on tropical regions, Australian archaeology including zooarchaeology (particularly molluscs) and taphonomy, as well as human ecology, economics, and technology. His work examines long-term human-environment interactions through archaeological evidence, with particular attention to molluscan resource use and coastal adaptation strategies across diverse geographical contexts.

His extensive publication record demonstrates strong expertise in zooarchaeological analysis of mollusks, human-environment interactions in South Asia and eastern Africa, and coastal adaptation strategies spanning from the Pleistocene to recent historical periods. His research bridges multiple continents and time periods, revealing patterns of human adaptation to coastal and island environments over millennia.

Scientific awards:

• ARC Future Fellowship (2022-2026 - FT200100464) for 'From the Rainforest to the Coast: Deep-Time Human-Environmental Interactions in South Asia'

Professor Faulkner supervises multiple research students working on coastal archaeology projects in Australia and Sri Lanka. His current research portfolio includes investigations of eastern African coasts, long-term human-environment interactions in Sri Lanka, the shift to sedentary life in the Natufian period, the Global South Anthropocene Project, and molluscan resource use in Australian freshwater ecosystems.

He maintains strong international research networks as a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Research Associate at the Australian Museum, Associate Editor of Archaeology in Oceania, and member of the Executive Committee of the International Council for Archaeozoology (ICAZ), demonstrating his significant standing in the global archaeological community.