Final answer:
Around 10-12,000 years ago, factors like the end of the last ice age and the need for reliable food sources led to the domestication of plants and animals, and sedentary living (sedentism).
Step-by-step explanation:
Approximately 10-12,000 years ago, the development of domestication and sedentism marked a significant transition in human history. Communities began to shift from nomadic hunting and gathering to a sedentary lifestyle based on agriculture and the domestication of plants and animals. This Neolithic Revolution was partly prompted by the end of the last ice age, which changed environments and animal migration patterns, creating a need for humans to adapt new strategies for survival.
The adoption of agricultural practices offered several benefits: a more reliable and abundant food supply leading to population growth, the ability to build permanent settlements like those seen in Mesoamerica, and the emergence of specialized occupations and trade. An increase in food supply also led to higher birth rates, although the close proximity of living quarters and the diseases spread by domestic animals caused an increase in death rates as well.
However, not all groups chose to adopt these strategies. For example, Indigenous peoples of Australia decided against agriculture, favoring hunting and gathering, which was more suitable for their needs and environment. Others, like pastoral societies, developed animal domestication as a cornerstone of their survival, breeding livestock for food, clothing, transport, and trade. This led to societal changes including hierarchical structures and less leisure time, contrasting with previous egalitarian hunter-gatherer societies.