Upcoming Symposia

Join us at an upcoming CARTA symposia as we continue to explore the origin of humans and the implications for the past, present and future of our species. Detailed event and registration information is provided on each symposium page. All event times are Pacific.

Date	Title
May 31, 2019 - 1:00pm	Anthropogeny: The Perspective from Africa
Oct 11, 2019 - 1:00pm	Impact of Early Life Deprivation on Cognition: Implications for the Evolutionary Origins of the Human Mind

Download the 2019 CARTA symposia schedule (PDF)

2020 CARTA Symposia

Winter 2020 (Date to be determined)
"Exploring the Origins of Today's Humans”
Co-Chairs: Sarah Tishkoff (University of Pennsylvania) & Richard Klein (Stanford University)

Where did we humans come from? When did we become the dominant species on the planet? Available evidence indicates that all humans living today are derived from a relatively small population that arose in Africa beginning >200,000 years ago, spreading throughout Africa and eventually the rest of the planet. In the course of this diaspora, we mated with other human-like species and assimilated some of their DNA, but eventually replaced all of these other close evolutionary cousins, without exception – leaving only one human species today. A flood of new information from Ancient DNA, Fossils, Archeology and Population Studies calls us to revisit the matter, summarizing knowledge and updating conclusions since the last CARTA symposium on the subject six years ago.

Spring 2020 (Date to be determined)
"The Evolution of Human Physical Activity”
Co-Chairs: Tatum Simonson (UC Diego) & Daniel Lieberman (Harvard University)

Fall 2020 (Date to be determined)
“Altered States of the Human Mind: Implications for Anthropogeny”
Co-Chairs: Patricia Churchland (UC San Diego) & Jean-Pierre Changeux (Institut Pasteur)