Maria’s project will investigate the economic transition from hunting to herding in Saudi Arabia in the 7th millennium BC. While the emergence of farming in the Levant and the Fertile Crescent has been intensively researched since the 1950s, the archaeology of Northern Arabia remains largely unknown. The project will use excavation and scientific analysis to identify the role climatic change, population movements and exchange of ideas played in the introduction of livestock in Arabia, and identify adaptation strategies to the marginal environment of the Nefud desert.