01 About
Nature has already run millions of evolutionary “experiments.” By analyzing ancient environmental DNA, AEGIS can identify lost genetic traits, ancestral diversity and beneficial species interactions that helped plants survive past stress episodes.
Our research focus is to
Reconstruct past ecosystems. By reading ancient environmental DNA alongside climate and archaeological records, AEGIS reveals how ecosystems shifted through periods of climate change and human land use — including which species were present, disappeared, or adapted.
Trace the evolution of agriculture. The project uncovers how early farming practices and domesticated crops responded to environmental pressures, showing how cultivation systems and plant genomes have changed through thousands of years.
Discover natural resilience. By comparing ancient and modern genomes, AEGIS pinpoints genetic adaptations and beneficial interactions — for example, between plants, soils, and microbes — that historically supported stress tolerance and productivity.
Translate insights into new solutions. These discoveries provide a foundation for developing climate-smart crops, sustainable land management strategies, and farming systems that strengthen biodiversity while reducing dependency on fertilizers and pesticides.
Ancient DNA unlocks nature’s long-forgotten solutions, offering a blueprint for crops that can thrive amid the challenges of a warming world
As the climate warms, harvests are becoming more erratic and the systems we rely on to grow food are under strain. The IPCC (UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) concludes that some of today’s global crop and livestock areas will become climatically unsuitable — about 10% by 2050, and over 30% by 2100 under a high-emissions pathway. Under a low-emissions pathway, this only drops to below 8%.
Many current production systems — often built on uniform genetics and heavy inputs — are less resilient to heat, drought, pests and extreme weather. These systems depend on fertilisers, pesticides and intensive irrigation, contributing to soil degradation, biodiversity loss and increased vulnerability to climate shocks.
Why current agricultural solutions are falling short
Today’s innovations focus on breeding and genetic modification of existing crops, but they are limited by:
- Reduced genetic diversity after centuries of domestication.
- Short-term ecological data, which cannot capture past extremes.
- Uncertainty about which traits will matter most in the future.
AEGIS will turn natural evolution into targeted solutions
During its first 7-year program, AEGIS will provide:
- An archive of thousands of ancient environmental samples from around the world.
- A public data depository for ancient eDNA, ecosystem data and contemporary reference genomes relevant for improving future crops and cropping systems.
- Tools for targeted trait predictions for crops and cropping systems tailored to specific climate or environmental regimes.
- Proof-of-principle by introducing ancient genetic variants into modern wheat, barley, and rice to improve resilience.
The AEGIS consortium
Across 18 institutions worldwide, the AEGIS consortium brings together expertise spanning evolutionary genomics, ancient environmental DNA, bioinformatics and data science, plant science and crop genetics, ecology and biodiversity research, geosciences and geochemistry, climate and environmental history, archaeology, law, philosophy and ethics of science, and more.
AEGIS collaborates with FREYJA — a community outreach and reciprocity program made possible by an additional grant from the Wellcome Trust — which co-develops ethical, inclusive approaches to ancient eDNA research with Indigenous and local communities.
Joint support from the Novo Nordisk Foundation and the Wellcome Trust enables a multi-year effort to generate one of the world’s largest ancient environmental DNA datasets, spanning multiple continents — from Arctic permafrost and European lake sediments to Amazonian Dark Earths and deep-ocean cores. This scale makes it possible to connect deep-time biological change with today’s sustainability challenges in agriculture and conservation.
How we work
The Section for GeoGenetics at the Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, serves as the hub of AEGIS. The initiative is led by an Executive Director, supported by a Vice Director and a Program Manager. Strategic direction is provided by an Executive Committee and a Scientific Steering Committee, with independent guidance from an Ethics Advisory Board and an external Scientific Advisory Board.
Executive committee
The Executive committee acts as the ultimate decision-making body that holds the responsibility of approving the budget and the strategy based on input and recommendations from the Scientific Steering Committee, and to handle the long-term interests of AEGIS.
Christiane Hertz-Fowler
Eske Willerslev
Executive Director
The Executive Director has the overall responsibility for defining the program strategy, scientific development, deliverables, and ultimate success of AEGIS.
Eske Willerslev
Scientific steering commitee
The Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) develops the strategy and direction of the research and is responsible for 3rioritization and balanced allocation of resources according to the strategy and needs.
Antonio Fernandez-Guerra
Christoph Dockter
Eske Willerslev
Marcel Van der Heijden
Rasmus Nielsen
Richard Durbin
Uta Paszkowski
Scientific advisory board
The Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) functions as a council to the Scientific Steering Committee on the scientific directions.
Ethics advisory board
The Ethics Advisory Board investigates and addresses a range of pressing agricultural, biomedical, and ecological issues. The Chair of the Ethical Advisory Board will sit on the Scientific Steering Commitee of AEGIS and serve as a liaison between the two bodies.
Elsa Tsioumani
