-
Recent Posts
Archives
Tags
2012 anthropology archaeology belize cacao cariaco cave central america classic climate climate change coastal cocoliztli collapse diamond disease education eladio pop environment explanation farming fishing food garifuna geochemistry geology hiking history intro introduction jared diamond maya music ocean paleoclimate proxies prufer rainfall santa cruz school sediments service learning stalagmites toledo traditionCategories
Meta
Monthly Archives: May 2012
“Sustainable Development” in Mayan Education
Having already spent a day with the kids at Santa Cruz Roman Catholic School, we returned to the school on Thursday with a heightened sense of confidence in our teaching abilities. As it were, the principal had requested that Britanny … Continue reading
Posted in experiential
Tagged education, experiential, maya, santa cruz, school, service learning, sustainability, tumul kin
2 Comments
Seismic data as a record of past erosion
Sediment layers are a useful tool for reconstructing ancient land use. They act as a record of soil movement and deposition, from which human activities may be inferred. In a 2007 study of ancient Maya deforestation, Anselmetti et al. use … Continue reading
Cultural exchange disguised as teaching
On Wednesday and Thursday of our first week in Toledo, we completed the service learning portion of our trip at Santa Cruz RC School, which educates the Mayan children of Santa Cruz village. With 109 students from ages 3-15, the … Continue reading
Posted in experiential
Tagged education, maya, santa cruz, school, service learning, teaching, toledo
Leave a comment
Place of Fallen Stones
Lubaantun were the first ruins that our group encountered and despite the long hot trek we had before this particular visit, we were all excited to finally witness the famous Mayan ruins. Due to the on and off light showers, … Continue reading
Posted in experiential
Tagged anthropology, archaeology, architecture, belize, classic, lubaantun, maya, ruin
Leave a comment
Lacustrine Time Machine Investigates the Duration of Mayan Civilization in Petén, Guatemala
Scientists have discovered a time machine that allows them to analyze records of environmental change to particular land areas subsequent to the duration of Mayan civilization. It’s not an actual device that physically transports them back in time but actually … Continue reading
Posted in research
Tagged climate change, geochemistry, geology, maya, paleoclimate, sediments
Leave a comment
Disease & Population Loss in Mesoamerica
As is widely known, the Mayan people saw a significant loss in population starting around AD 770. There is no conclusive evidence indicating one specific cause of this collapse; most likely, it was a combination of several contributing factors. Centuries … Continue reading
Self-Inflicted Wounds
In order to thoroughly understand societal collapse, it is important to explore the idea that, often times, the “nail in the coffin” for many societies is a bad decision, or collection of bad decisions, that the society itself makes. Joseph … Continue reading
Eladio’s Farm: Cacao and the Modern Mayan
Continuing our immersion into Belizean culture, we began our second full day abroad by paying a visit to Agouti Cacao Farm. Owned by Eladio Pop, a native to the nearby Mayan village San Pedro Columbia, the farm was a must-see … Continue reading
Using proxies to measure rainfall
Dr. Gregory Haug and colleagues raised a question: “does climate make history?” in their 2003 paper they presented scientific evidence that supported the theory that drought due to climate change caused the collapse of the Maya civilization. Unexpectedly, everyone has … Continue reading
Our introduction to the Garinagu
After a 5-hour van ride from Belize City airport, we arrived late last night at Sun Creek Lodge (outside the town of Punta Gorda) where we will be staying until next Monday. Our digs consist of open-air cabañas planted in … Continue reading