Popular theory claiming Easter Island’s population collapsed due to ‘ecocide’ is debunked

New archaeological research has disproved one of the world's most famous historical narratives: the environmental cautionary tale that claimed the ancient civilization of Easter Island collapsed in the Pacific Ocean because the islanders destroyed its ecosystem.

The research instead reveals how that civilization thrived through tenacity and innovation, until it was ultimately destroyed not by native Polynesian environmental disaster, but by European aggression, disease and exploitation.

The archaeological research shows that the island's population remained stable at around 3,000 until the arrival of often violent and disease-causing European whalers, slavers and colonizers in the mid-19th century.

The population's ability to ...