Scales, Sources, and Simulations: Reviewing Studies on Human–Environment Interactions in the Mediterranean from 1000 BCE to 1000 CE

Abstract

Understanding long-term human–environment dynamics is essential for contemporary debates on resilience and sustainability. This paper reviews approaches to studying humans and their environments in the Mediterranean between 1000 BCE and 1000 CE, with particular emphasis on the role of agent-based modelling (ABM). The region is strongly shaped by human activity, richly documented by archaeological, palaeoenvironmental, and historical written sources, and characterised by complex socio-ecological dynamics throughout the study period. We first synthesise how different sources/archives of evidence have been used to reconstruct past human–environmental links, assessing spatial and temporal resolutions and the methodological challenges of combining different evidence. We then review ABMs that focus on human–environment relationships in the study period and region, examining how they incorporate different datasets, how explicit models are, and to what extent qualitative historical information is translated into formal computational frameworks. Despite the region’s relatively exceptional research history, few ABMs directly engage with socio-ecological dynamics, and even fewer exploit the potential of historical texts as structured inputs to simulations. Our review identifies key methodological gaps at the intersection of archaeology, history, environmental science, and modelling practice. We argue that ABM remains underutilised for moving beyond correlational reasoning: it can be used to test proposed causal mechanisms, explore emergent socio-ecological patterns, and link processes operating at multiple scales. We conclude by outlining directions for future ABM research on the Mediterranean that could better integrate diverse sources of evidence and contribute more effectively to debates on long-term resilience and sustainability.