Department of Anthropology Uses Cultural Model to Study the Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is facing a variety of environmental problems. From declining water quality to sea level rise and development in rural areas, North America's largest estuary is undergoing changes that affect local and regional communities. Various programs at the University of Maryland, College Park study the Chesapeake and the ways to restore and manage the bay.

The Maryland Sea Grant office on Hartwick Road 

The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science is the main institution for advanced environmental research in the University of Maryland System. It includes five research laboratories including the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory in Solomons and the Maryland Sea Grant in College Park.


Founded in 1925, the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory is known for its excellence in fisheries science and environmental chemistry. Their research has evaluated the stock of blue crabs and examined how toxins affect the reproduction of turtles in the bay. Environmental research is extremely important to learning about the Chesapeake Bay, but it is not the only method for studying the problems it presents.

Anthropological Approach to an Environmental Issue 

While some disciplines focus on the ecological and biological processes that affect the Chesapeake Bay environment, Dr. Michael Paolisso takes a cultural approach to study the issue. As Professor and Director of Graduate Studies for the Department of Anthropology, Dr. Paolisso looks at the cultural environmental dynamics surrounding the bay.

Dr. Paolisso's research examines how different groups understand environmental problems and solutions by drawing on different sets of overlapping cultural knowledge. "I think part of the problem is we're not aware that so many of our environmental issues are filtered and understood through cultural lenses. Like, what is pollution to you?"

Many fail to recognize that while environment issues are rooted in natural ecosystems, "their understanding and the value and what they mean to us is cultural." Part of the problem is that people do not understand they are bringing their own set of cultural knowledge and beliefs. People are bringing tacit and stored knowledge about nature and the environment, and this shapes how they see the issues of the Chesapeake.

The Chesapeake Bay Has Value Because of Cultural Beliefs 

The value of the Chesapeake Bay is derived from individuals' cultural knowledge and beliefs, and is not tied to any inherent value of nature. In general, people value the bay and want to maintain and restore it, but these individuals are broken into subgroups that cherish the bay for different reasons.

Some see the Chesapeake as a natural resource to be harvested to support communities, while others see it as a place for recreation like kayaking or bird watching. People like scientists see it as a complex ecological system, while environmentalists want to protect what they view as natural. 

Each of these stakeholder groups brings a unique set of cultural beliefs that informs how they view the Chesapeake Bay. While these are just some of the groups that treasure the estuary, Dr. Paolisso believes that everyone in the Chesapeake's massive watershed is a stakeholder to varying degrees. 

Stakeholders Bring Explicit and Implicit Beliefs to the Issue

Anthropologists are interested in explicit knowledge, what people say and do, as well as what is implicit and tacit. People bring cultural knowledge to everything they do, without realizing that this stored knowledge . This knowledge is shared, but not always shared equally. Dr. Paolisso is specifically interested in what drives the knowledge to be distributed in one way or another.

By understanding the tacit cultural beliefs that exist among stakeholders, we can understand what is driving the underlying environmental issues. "If we're not aware and understand that we're bringing cultural knowledge, values and beliefs to our environmental problems, then we kind of have blinders on," Dr. Paolisso added. By educating people about the implicit knowledge they are bringing to the Chesapeake Bay issue, it may be possible to foster a solution. 

Learning About Other Group's Values Encourages Teamwork

The Chesapeake Bay is massive, with over 3,000 miles of coastline and a dearth of problems that need to be managed. There are many stakeholders with different ideas about what the Chesapeake is meant to be and how it should restored and maintained. The department of anthropology at Maryland uses collaborative learning to create discussion among groups and to find common ground. 

In Dr. Paolisso's experience, people know little about others and their views. However, individuals carry implicit knowledge that informs their opinion of other people and groups and often make assumptions. Simply by bringing groups together to learn about each other's beliefs, people can begin to build rapport with one another. 

The goal is to create a space for people to recognize and share their own beliefs and cultural views. Once people understand where others are coming from, working together is much more likely and possible, even if disagreements occur. Ultimately, the hope is that collaborative learning will allow different stakeholders to collectively decide the best way to tackle the problems of the bay. 

Live Crabs  for Maryland Day

While there are many opportunities to see the work of Maryland's Department of Anthropology on Maryland Day, one exhibit will discuss the work on the Chesapeake. Those who attend can touch live crabs and learn about the human dimension of bay restoration and the research being done to add to the literature. 

Other Department of Anthropology exhibits include a demonstration on how to make stone tools, an archaeology in Annapolis interactive exhibit and a luncheon for alumni.