Associate Professor Alison V.G. Betts

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Associate Professor Alison Betts lectures on the archaeology of the Near East and Central Asia at the University of Sydney. Her teaching and research interests centre upon the archaeology and history of nomadic peoples.  Research areas include the prehistory of the North Arabian steppe, rock art, hunting traps and water harvesting systems, the origins of nomadic pastoralism in the Near East, nomad-state relations, the Bronze Age of Central Asia, and the later prehistory of the Badiyat al-Sham and the early development of the Zoroastrian faith.

Associate Professor Betts established the University of Sydney Central Asian Programme (USCAP)  in 1992 to support archaeological research into Central Asia. Under the auspices of USCAP three collaborative archaeological programmes are currently in progress in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and China. USCAP also organises workshops and conferences, and promotes academic and popular publications. A key aim is to encourage the publication of research by citizens of Central Asian countries in English language journals and monographs.