The first seminar called Materiality, language and identities was held in October 2008. Organized by Charlotte Damm, group leader of the CAS research project Early Networking in Northern Fennoscandia.

Invited speakers were:

• Dr. John Edward Terrell, Regenstein Curator of Pacific Anthropology, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, USA
• Dr. Olivier Gosselain, Centre d’Anthropologie Culturelle, Institut de Sociologie de l’ULB, Bruxelles, Belgium
• Dr. Ilona Bausch, Dpt. of Archaeology, University of Leiden, Netherlands
• Dr. Petri Kallio, Department of Finno-Ugrian Studies, University of Helsinki, Finland