EurekAlert! In the Spotlight - Indigenous Peoples' Day

In honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day, we’re exploring how Indigenous communities contribute to science, conservation, health research, and much more.

Australian cave discovery shows grass was burned for magic, healing, and cursing for 25,000 years

Frontiers
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists analyzed phytoliths, silica microfossils from plants, collected from archaeological pits dug in Cloggs Cave, a special place of the GunaiKurnai First Nations people. Almost all (up to 97%) of the phytoliths came from grasses of a range of species. Up to 18% of the phytoliths were melted or burnt, which means that they were purposively carried in by people. The authors concluded that the Old Ancestors selectively brought in grasses for burning. Approximately 2,000 years ago, grasses were burnt around a small standing stone used to perform magic. Ethnographers and oral traditions have reported that such rituals using ash from burnt plants took place across GunaiKurnai Country during the 19th century.

Journal: Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology
Funder: Australian Research Council

21-Jul-2026

Indigenous knowledge key to building healthier and more sustainable food systems

University of East Anglia
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Traditional and Indigenous knowledge could play a vital role in addressing some of the world's most pressing challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and poor health and nutrition, according to a new review of current research.

Journal: Nature Food

21-Jul-2026

Students unearth rare, centuries-year old pot at Florida Spanish mission site

Florida Museum of Natural History

Archaeology students have discovered a rare, intact clay pot at a Florida Spanish mission site dating back to the 17th century. The pot was likely made by the Indigenous Potano people who lived at the mission.

15-Jul-2026

Hasanuddin University study identifies barriers to customary land rights recognition in Indonesia

Hasanuddin University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Recognizing customary land rights for Indonesia's indigenous (adat) communities remains an ongoing challenge. A study from Hasanuddin University examines why, despite national legal reforms, most adat communities are yet to receive formal recognition. The findings highlight how legal fragmentation, reliance on local political support, and complex recognition procedures continue to hinder progress, while showing how advocacy organizations and reforms to simplify the recognition process could help more communities secure their customary land rights.

Journal: Land Use Policy
Funder: Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan, Ministry of Finance

9-Jul-2026

Modelling reveals Sydney’s 1789 smallpox outbreak killed as many as 220,000 Indigenous Australians

Flinders University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Groundbreaking modelling has revealed that as many as 220,000 Indigenous Australians died in a devastating 1789 smallpox outbreak that originated in Sydney, by tracing its origins to the First Fleet. Soon after British ships arrived, smallpox swept through First Nations communities in the Sydney area and many died as a result.

Journal: Nature Human Behaviour
Funder: Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Indigenous and Environmental Histories and Futures, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship, Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship, Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage

Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

Latest News Releases

Australian cave discovery shows grass was burned for magic, healing, and cursing for 25,000 years

Indigenous knowledge key to building healthier and more sustainable food systems

Students unearth rare, centuries-year old pot at Florida Spanish mission site

Hasanuddin University study identifies barriers to customary land rights recognition in Indonesia

Modelling reveals Sydney’s 1789 smallpox outbreak killed as many as 220,000 Indigenous Australians

Amazon’s biocultural heritage under greater threat than expected