Investigations into what it means to be human have often focused on attempts to uncover the earliest material traces of art, language, or technological complexity. More recently, however, scholars have begun to argue that more attention should be paid to the ecological uniqueness of our species. A new study published in Archaeological Research in Asia reviews the palaeoecological information associated with hominin dispersals into Southeast Asia and Oceania throughout the Pleistocene (1.25 Ma to 12 ka). Our species’ ability to specialize in the exploitation of diverse and extreme settings in this part of the world stands in stark contrast to the ecological adaptations of other hominin taxa, and reaffirms the utility of exploring the environmental adaptations of Homo sapiens as an avenue for understanding what it means to be human.