History is not always as it seems, and a Binghamton University professor is looking to rewrite the story of the people of Easter Island.

Anthropology professor Carl Lipo said Rapa Nui, better known as Easter Island and recognized for its iconic stone statues, is seen as an example of a people destroying their land by overusing resources. But instead, he said it is an example of a people enduring over time with scarce resources.

“It’s often been treated as this catastrophe, something that we should learn from in order to avoid,” Lipo said. “I think we can go there to understand what it takes for a community of people to live on an island with limited resources, in such a way that allows them to persist over a really long period of time.”

In his talk, which was part of the Evolution Studies (EvoS) series talks, Lipo discussed a model first proposed by anthropologist Jared Diamond. This widely accepted theory explains the fall of the people living in Rapa Nui as a response to the overuse of their resources. With this model in mind, Lipo went to Rapa Nui in 2000 to determine what caused the collapse of those living there.

According to Lipo, the explanation offered by Diamond does not fit with what he discovered. He explored the meaning behind the moai statues, and said their meanings varied. From a family perspective, they symbolize ancestors; from a community perspective, they tie the people together and represent community resources.

Lipo said that European contact was more likely what had a devastating impact on the island. When Jacob Roggeveen discovered it in 1722, the population was around 3,000 according to Lipo, but by 1877 it was down to 111. Diamond’s theory also states that the cause of their collapse was a growth of their population, but Lipo said that is unlikely.

“When we look at the record we actually see there is no evidence of a demographic collapse,” he said. “We don’t find any archaeological evidence that directly associates with somehow there being a maximum number and then an abandonment of that stuff in prehistory.”

Lipo said that the population of Rapa Nui was most likely never very large because of the lack of resources on the island. The people had to use slash-and-burn farming to give the ground nutrients, Lipo said, which helps explain the lack of trees on the island. He said this evidence shows the people worked with what they had and did not face a decline until much later due to the European influence.

Susan Ryan, the EvoS program coordinator, said Lipo’s focus on evolution and environmental issues are why the program had him speak.

“I think everyone has a preconceived notion of evolution,” she said. “I think Carl Lipo will open up their eyes to how evolution can apply to so many different aspects of our lives, of our studies here on campus and understanding the human condition.”

Tiffany Kurian, a senior majoring in integrative neuroscience, said that the talk had many implications for our world today.

“I think people get wrapped up in what’s going on here and in classes,” Kurian said, “and sometimes forget about looking at the bigger scope of things and the bigger picture about what’s going on in our environment and how we’re going to survive towards the future.”