Summary
Alexandria M. Firenzi is broadly interested in how marine shell archives record environmental signals through time at localized scales to improve understanding of how coastal environments have changed and how human–environment interactions have both influenced and been influenced by shifting habitats. Her work spans the Holocene and focuses on two primary study regions: California’s Channel Islands and the adjacent Pecho Coast of San Luis Obispo County.
Her research primarily utilizes Mytilus californianus as a paleoenvironmental proxy. Through sclerochronology and geochemical analyses, including stable isotope (δ13C & δ18O) and elemental (Mg/Ca) analysis, she reconstructs environmental variability across the Santa Barbara Channel at fine spatial and temporal scales. Working with both modern and archaeological shell material from four archaeological sites and two adjacent modern controls, her research aims to refine localized environmental baselines, capturing both long-term (climatic) and short-term (e.g., ENSO) fluctuations. These reconstructions contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of coastal ecosystem dynamics on multiple current systems (Counter Current and California Current) and provide a refined temporal framework for interpreting past human mobility, resource use, and habitat engagement.
Firenzi collaborates with a range of laboratories and institutions on and off campus, beyond those indicated above, including the Nevada Paleoenvironmental Analysis Laboratory in the Department of Geography and the Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie in Mainz, Germany. Her technical training includes prior work in the Stable Isotope Preparation Laboratory at California State University, Chico, preparing osteological samples for the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and on a collaborative project with the Muwekma Ohlone. As an interdisciplinary researcher interested in the broader impacts of her work, Alexandria also has experience in science communication through her contributions as director and co-editor of Emmy-nominated environmental and cultural documentary, Beyond the Shell.
Though highly lab and theory-focused, fieldwork remains a central component of her research and teaching experience. As co-lead and crew chief on a cooperative agreement with Channel Islands National Park, she has conducted intensive pedestrian surveys on Santa Cruz Island every summer since 2022. She has also worked throughout California with the U.S. Forest Service (2021) and Cabrillo College (2022), emphasizing field engagement as a means to connect students with the outdoors and local cultural heritage. Beyond her fieldwork, Firenzi is dedicated to mentorship and student support at the University of Nevada, Reno, where she serves as an Upward Bound internship mentor and is currently funded as a Fellowships Coordinator in the Office of Undergraduate (& Graduate) Fellowships, where she advises students applying for nationally and internationally competitive awards. Alexandria was also previously funded by the University Innevation Center as the Office Coordinator (2022-2025), where she helped advise on student projects, including social media and marketing, business-based statistics, and student career development-based projects broadly.
Research interests
- Historical ecology
- Coastal archaeology
- Human-environmental dynamics
- Human behavioral ecology
- Zooarchaeology
- Geochemical ecology
- Sclerochronology
Courses taught
- ANTH 111: Intro to Biological Anthropology (Lab Instructor), at California State University, Chico
- ANTH 202: Introduction to Archaeology (Teaching Assistant)
Selected publications
- Firenzi, Alexandria M., Stacey Jones, Daniel Bruns, Brian Brazeal. 2023. Beyond the Shell: A Film on the Ecology and Culture of a Scarce Marine Resources. Department of Anthropology, CSU, Chico, Advanced Laboratory of Visual Anthropology. (2025 NATA San Francisco/ NorCal Emmy Awards Nominee)
- Eerkens, Jelmer W.; Tichinin, Alina; Karapanos, Nikoletta; Campbell-Grey, Alexandra; Firenzi, Alexandria M.; Bartelink, Eric J.; Leventhal, Alan M.; Arellano, Monica V.; and DeOrnellas, Brieann, "Contrasting Male and Female Dietary Life Histories: A Case Study at an Ancestral Muwekma Ohlone Heritage Site in San Jose, California" (2022). Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints. 199.
Notable exhibitions
- Current status: Ph.D. student (Fourth-Year)
- Ph.D. dissertation title: Assessing Environmental Variability and Human-Environment Engagement through Sclerochronochemical Analyses and Behavioral Ecology on the Santa Barbara Channel
- Lab associations: Human Paleoecology and Archaeometry Laboratory (Department of Anthropology) & Stratigraphy and Paleontology Laboratory (Department of Geology)
Education
- B.A. with Honors, Department of Anthropology, College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, California State University, Chico, 2022
- Certificate in Forensic Identification, Department of Anthropology, College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, California State University, Chico, 2022