Introducing CArE, a Pilot Project Investigating the Agro-Pastoral Landscapes at the Zagros Foothills (Kurdistan Region of Iraq)

The Zagros foothills of the Duhok Governorate constitute an ideal observatory for investigating long-term interactions between sedentary and semi-nomadic communities, as this region preserves dense, multiperiod, and intertwined agropastoral landscapes. Despite their archaeological potential, these upland zones have long been overshadowed by the rich sites of the fertile Tigris plains. Today, the survival of this fragile and often ephemeral heritage is increasingly at risk due to rapid physical, social, and economic transformations affecting the region. In response to this urgency, the joint CArE project (Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia and Università degli Studi di Udine) was conceived to advance our understanding of the interplay between diverse communities in ancient Upper Mesopotamia while contributing to the documentation and protection of a highly threatened landscape. The project adopts an innovative methodological framework that is both diachronic and multiscalar, integrating historical and modern satellite imagery, UAV photogrammetry, systematic pedestrian survey, and GIS-based single-feature recording. It focuses on remote and ground-based investigations of interconnected cultural features associated with pastoral and agro-pastoral land use, including cairns, enclosures, terraces, and walled fields. This paper introduces the pilot project's aims and methodological approach, and discusses preliminary results from the remote and field survey.