ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates the value of an archaeological perspective on natural disasters both for the future and for understanding processes of change in human societies. It shows that both chaos and selection were important in shaping the cultural history of the Willaumez Peninsula. Social factors must have played an important role in the settlement history of the Willaumez Peninsula. The huge scale of the Holocene volcanic eruptions in the Willaumez Peninsula led to massive destruction of natural resources following the emplacement of thick layers of tephra and the transformation of landscape through erosion and redeposition, abandonment of the region. The chapter presents case studies on Garua Island and within the isthmus region that have provided an intriguing insight into the long-term effects of catastrophic environments on human history. Extinction events followed by rapid evolution should be a common occurrence, given the severity of the disasters in a catastrophic environment.
