Professor of cultural anthropology with applied interests in the western USA and Caribbean. Worked with the people of Barbados, Antigua, the Dominican Republic, and the Bahamas in the West Indies. Worked with over 120 Native American tribes in North America. As an applied cultural anthropologist, I am especially interested in being useful for solving human problems especially as these relate to changes in the environment. Recently our research team has been working on human interactions with volcanos and areas where volcanos have created special heritage places. In recent papers, we have documented where volcanic areas are culturally important to Native American pilgrimage trails. Phone: 520 9072330
Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic Speaking tribal elders who... more Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic Speaking tribal elders whom we have worked with for over 60 years on an estimated 200 ethnographic studies. Key in this analysis are the protocols for approaching, interacting, and using the places where Storied Rocks have been located. Concomitant with these traditional protocols are ones estab-lished to resolve the curiosity of non-Natives about why they are in a particular place and what they mean. This analysis shares the cultural understandings of Tribal representatives who par-ticipated in these ethnographic studies. Studies used in the analysis were funded by U.S. federal agencies, supported by federally recognized Native American tribal governments, and composed with the cultural understandings shared and made public by tribally appointed elders to clarify the conundrums that are Storied Rocks.
Mateo Tepe or Devils Tower has now been listed as one of the more importaant geosites in the worl... more Mateo Tepe or Devils Tower has now been listed as one of the more importaant geosites in the world. It was nominated as both significant from a geology perspective and from the heritage perspective of numerous Native peoples. An article has been published by the authors containing more arguments.
This presentation was created to discuss the findings of the report American Indians and Fajada B... more This presentation was created to discuss the findings of the report American Indians and Fajada Butte.
University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections, 1990
This report presents a review of the literature concerning Native American occupancy and use of t... more This report presents a review of the literature concerning Native American occupancy and use of the Yucca Mountain area and vicinity. It draws on a wide range of material, including early traveler reports, government documents, ethnographic and historical works, and local newspapers. The report complements two other concurrent studies, one focused on the cultural resources of Native American people in the study area and the other an ethnobotanical study of plant resources used by Native American people in the study area. Both concurrent studies are based on interviews with Native American people. The literature review was designed to contribute to the understanding of the presence of Native American people in the Yucca Mountain area. A review of the existing literature about the Yucca Mountain area and southern Nye County, supplemented by the broader literature about the Great Basin, has verified three aspects of the study design. First, the review has aided in assessing the completeness of the list of Native American ethnic groups that have traditional or historical ties to the site. Second, it has aided in the production of a chronology of Native American activities that occurred on or near the site during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Third, it has helped to identify the location of cultural resources, including burials and other archaeological sites, in the study area and vicinity.
University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections, 2013
This is an ethnographic overview of contemporary, traditionally associated American
Indians that... more This is an ethnographic overview of contemporary, traditionally associated American
Indians that present an evaluation of the cultural and natural resources of Fajada Butte that they use and value, and an assessment of the needs of American Indian communities for plant materials from within Chaco Culture NHP in order to continue with their traditional and ceremonial practices. As such, this study emphasizes those resources defined by American Indians as having ceremonial and legendary significance. The study was funded by the National Park Service on September 15, 1992, and was managed by the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. The ethnographic overview is focused on two broad issues: (1) Fajada Butte and its significance to American Indian people and (2) the traditional use of plants and their cultural significance to American Indian people. An additional goal of this study is to contribute information about the process of tribal-park consultation including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)..
The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River is the traditional homeland of many Native American people... more The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River is the traditional homeland of many Native American peoples, including the Southern Paiutes, Hualapai, Havasupai, Zuni Pueblo, Hopi Pueblo, and Navajo. Many massive volcanoes with widespread lava flows have been witnessed by these Native Americans over the past 40,000 years, so their various cultural understandings and ceremonial responses to volcanism are grounded in experience. Pilgrimage is one example of a persistent ceremonial response to volcanic areas by Native American peoples. This analysis is based on 902 ethnographic interviews with Paiute elders conducted over decades by the authors. The Paiute response to volcanism is typical of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States but manifests itself uniquely in the geology of the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River. The analysis argues that these are heritage places and landscapes to be protected by the IUCN World Conservation Congress (IUCN 2024) which is where the world comes together to set priorities and drive conservation and sustainable development action. More than 9,000 people participated in the 2021 Congress in Marseille. Experts shared the latest science and best practices, and IUCN Members voted on 39 motions to guide humanity’s relationship with our planet for the decades ahead. Keywords: Volcanic cultural heritages, Geosites, Geoscapes, Geoheritage, Native Americans, Southern Paiutes aboriginal lands, Grand Canyon, Colorado River
A presentation on the historic and prehistoric use of resources at Isle Royale National Park. The... more A presentation on the historic and prehistoric use of resources at Isle Royale National Park. The complete report, which can be found in this collection, is titled 'The Isle Royale Folkefiskerisamfunn: Familier Som Levde Av Fiske: An Ethnohistory of the Scandinavian Folk Fishermen of Isle Royale National Park.'
Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage ter... more Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage terms like geoparks for research and management is discussed in a special issue of the journal Land entitled Geoparks, Geotrails, and Geotourism-Linking Geology, Geoheritage, and Geoeducation that was edited by Margaret Brocx and Vic Semeniuk [1]. They summarize the worldwide movement towards using these concepts to better understand heritage places that involve a number of geoparks and geotrails that have been established, e.g., UNESCO. Global Geoparks where the geology, geotours, and local economy are linked for the well-being of the local people and operate under the auspices of UNESCO, and National or State-oriented geoparks/geotrails where the geology is identified as significant and preserved in conservation estates and utilized for tours, education, and other commercial purposes. Well-designed and organized geoparks/geotrails provide valuable sites for geoeducation, including suitable localities for collecting minerals and fossils, and all types of geoparks/geotrails can function for geotourism. Geotours in geoparks/geotrails provide excellent opportunity for introducing the public and students to the wealth of information and history that the Earth has to offer and professional geologists to the diversity of Earth Science globally. This analysis contributes to our understanding of the UNESCO use of geoparks by demonstrating how Effigy Mounds National Monument (NM) and its surrounding ceremonial landscape fits into a broader discussion of multi-ethnic [Ethnicity is the social organization of cultural difference (Barth 1969). We use ethnic groups here to denote socially defined subdivisions of a common
People from western cultures have regularly viewed desert playas of the western United States as ... more People from western cultures have regularly viewed desert playas of the western United States as sterile and of little utility except for gathering salt or minerals. In line with this unimportant valuation of desert playas by western observers, many call the region "The Great American Wasteland" [1]. The region's culturally affiliated Native Americans, however, tend to view these playas as heritage areas extending back in deep time to the Pleistocene when they were filled with lakes, surrounded by wetlands, and drained by permanent streams. According to the University of Utah's Shoshoni Dictionary[2] (Shoshoni Language Project 2024), the Goshute people refer to themselves as the Newe[nɨwɨ] or Newenee [nɨwɨnɨɨ] meaning the Person or the People. There have been times throughout their history where they have been referred to as Kutsipiuti (Gutsipiuti) or Kuttuhsippeh which translates to "People of the dry earth" or "People of the Desert" (literally: "dust, dry ashes People") [1,3]. Goshute means people covered with dust, dusty people, or desert, terms which were reiterated generations later in Halmo et al. [4]. In the same study, contemporary Goshute people who are fluent in their language use the term in reference to the white alkali dust that lines the lowest portions of most valleys [4,5]. Our analysis explains why the playa dust symbolizes heritage connections with the land and past lives. Native American heritage perspectives regarding playas are required in national searches for places to drop bombs, make landing strips for large military aircraft, build industrial scale solar arrays, and mine rare earth minerals, including lithium.
Natural Science and Indigenous Knowledge: the American Experience, 2023
Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and... more Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and speaking with them. They have always lived in a living university, so there has never been a time when they have not been seeking information from the environment, testing their interpretations of what they observe, and formulating conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
Devils Tower is located in Wyoming, USA. It is composed of volcanic elements from the Tertiary Pe... more Devils Tower is located in Wyoming, USA. It is composed of volcanic elements from the Tertiary Period of geologic time. Geologists are interested in this geosite because it is a unique, upstanding, steep-sided, high-relief exhumed Tertiary-age volcanic plug. As a Native cultural geosite, however, it is often called Mateo Tepe, and it is a sacred place to over 20 Native American tribes. It was inscribed as America's first national monument in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt, which was argued because of its special geology. It is visually dramatic due to its columns, which are understood by earth scientists as a wonder of geology, but by Native people as the claw scratches of a spiritual bear. These vertical cracks are the focus of rock climbers and Native people, respectively as opportunities for adventure and self-fulfillment and spiritual paths to another dimension and the achievement of religious balance in the world. Mateo Tepe became a national monument due to it being a unique geologic feature. The geopark concept is used in this analysis to talk about this geologically based monument.
This is a data-based analysis of how Native American interpretations of their distant past are be... more This is a data-based analysis of how Native American interpretations of their distant past are being considered reflecting new science findings. A key science understanding developed over the past 75 years has been that Native people did not occupy North America (or any place in the so-called New World) longer than 12,000 years before present (BP), thus they could neither have experienced nor understood any event in the late Pleistocene interglacial period (128,000 BP to 11,700 BP). As called in this analysis, the Clovis glass ceiling references the popular use of Clovis spear points to represent the earliest signs of humans in North America with dates generally later than 12,000 BP. This analysis engaged with recent science findings that Native people were present in North America up to 40,000 years ago. Opening the science limits of Native presence affords a reinterpretation of the past using extant Native interpretations. As an example, Salt Spring near Death Valley is a component of an ancient Pleistocene heritage landscape that can be reconstructed using geology and Native American interpretations. Native American perspectives were derived from 404 ethnographic interviews with Numic speaking peoples, focused on 24 ancient springs near Death Valley,
Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage ter... more Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage terms like geoparks for research and management is discussed in a special issue of the journal Land entitled Geoparks, Geotrails, and Geotourism-Linking Geology, Geoheritage, and Geoeducation that was edited by Margaret Brocx and Vic Semeniuk [1]. They summarize the worldwide movement towards using these concepts to better understand heritage places that involve a number of geoparks and geotrails that have been established, e.g., UNESCO. Global Geoparks where the geology, geotours, and local economy are linked for the well-being of the local people and operate under the auspices of UNESCO, and National or State-oriented geoparks/geotrails where the geology is identified as significant and preserved in conservation estates and utilized for tours, education, and other commercial purposes. Well-designed and organized geoparks/geotrails provide valuable sites for geoeducation, including suitable localities for collecting minerals and fossils, and all types of geoparks/geotrails can function for geotourism. Geotours in geoparks/geotrails provide excellent opportunity for introducing the public and students to the wealth of information and history that the Earth has to offer and professional geologists to the diversity of Earth Science globally. This analysis contributes to our understanding of the UNESCO use of geoparks by demonstrating how Effigy Mounds National Monument (NM) and its surrounding ceremonial landscape fits into a broader discussion of multi-ethnic [Ethnicity is the social organization of cultural difference (Barth 1969). We use ethnic groups here to denote socially defined subdivisions of a common
Natural science and indigenous knowledge : the Americas experience, 2024
Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and... more Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and speaking with them. They have always lived in a living university, so there has never been a time when they have not been seeking information from the environment, testing their interpretations of what they observe, and formulating conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
The research presented in this document builds upon the ethnohistoric, ethnographic, ethnobotanic... more The research presented in this document builds upon the ethnohistoric, ethnographic, ethnobotanical and ethnozoological information that was discussed in the first Black Mountain study. The lands of the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) were traditionally occupied and used by the Numic people.
The purpose of this study is to provide an ethnohistoric and ethnographic assessment of selected ... more The purpose of this study is to provide an ethnohistoric and ethnographic assessment of selected contemporary communities along the Old Spanish Trail.
A new volcano erupted in the eleventh century AD in the San Francisco volcanic field, which has a... more A new volcano erupted in the eleventh century AD in the San Francisco volcanic field, which has as many as 80 old volcanoes and 600 eruption cones all centered around Flagstaff, Arizona. This volcanic landscape has been a cultural center for Native American spiritual activities for up to 23,000 years. During that time, they have come to perceive volcanoes as earth navels and thus places where the earth is reborn. For this reason, the emergence of an active volcano, called Sunset Crater, drew pilgrims and resulted in the construction of ceremonial and support communities surrounding a place called Wupatki. This paper is partially based on a 2004 study funded by the U.S. National Park Service, which produced 80 ethnographic interviews with representatives of six Native American ethnic groups composed of 12 tribes and pueblos. The analysis is informed by a total of 23 ethnographic studies of volcanoes conducted with Native Americans by the authors. In all studies, Native American parti...
Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic Speaking tribal elders who... more Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic Speaking tribal elders whom we have worked with for over 60 years on an estimated 200 ethnographic studies. Key in this analysis are the protocols for approaching, interacting, and using the places where Storied Rocks have been located. Concomitant with these traditional protocols are ones estab-lished to resolve the curiosity of non-Natives about why they are in a particular place and what they mean. This analysis shares the cultural understandings of Tribal representatives who par-ticipated in these ethnographic studies. Studies used in the analysis were funded by U.S. federal agencies, supported by federally recognized Native American tribal governments, and composed with the cultural understandings shared and made public by tribally appointed elders to clarify the conundrums that are Storied Rocks.
Mateo Tepe or Devils Tower has now been listed as one of the more importaant geosites in the worl... more Mateo Tepe or Devils Tower has now been listed as one of the more importaant geosites in the world. It was nominated as both significant from a geology perspective and from the heritage perspective of numerous Native peoples. An article has been published by the authors containing more arguments.
This presentation was created to discuss the findings of the report American Indians and Fajada B... more This presentation was created to discuss the findings of the report American Indians and Fajada Butte.
University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections, 1990
This report presents a review of the literature concerning Native American occupancy and use of t... more This report presents a review of the literature concerning Native American occupancy and use of the Yucca Mountain area and vicinity. It draws on a wide range of material, including early traveler reports, government documents, ethnographic and historical works, and local newspapers. The report complements two other concurrent studies, one focused on the cultural resources of Native American people in the study area and the other an ethnobotanical study of plant resources used by Native American people in the study area. Both concurrent studies are based on interviews with Native American people. The literature review was designed to contribute to the understanding of the presence of Native American people in the Yucca Mountain area. A review of the existing literature about the Yucca Mountain area and southern Nye County, supplemented by the broader literature about the Great Basin, has verified three aspects of the study design. First, the review has aided in assessing the completeness of the list of Native American ethnic groups that have traditional or historical ties to the site. Second, it has aided in the production of a chronology of Native American activities that occurred on or near the site during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Third, it has helped to identify the location of cultural resources, including burials and other archaeological sites, in the study area and vicinity.
University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections, 2013
This is an ethnographic overview of contemporary, traditionally associated American
Indians that... more This is an ethnographic overview of contemporary, traditionally associated American
Indians that present an evaluation of the cultural and natural resources of Fajada Butte that they use and value, and an assessment of the needs of American Indian communities for plant materials from within Chaco Culture NHP in order to continue with their traditional and ceremonial practices. As such, this study emphasizes those resources defined by American Indians as having ceremonial and legendary significance. The study was funded by the National Park Service on September 15, 1992, and was managed by the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. The ethnographic overview is focused on two broad issues: (1) Fajada Butte and its significance to American Indian people and (2) the traditional use of plants and their cultural significance to American Indian people. An additional goal of this study is to contribute information about the process of tribal-park consultation including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)..
The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River is the traditional homeland of many Native American people... more The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River is the traditional homeland of many Native American peoples, including the Southern Paiutes, Hualapai, Havasupai, Zuni Pueblo, Hopi Pueblo, and Navajo. Many massive volcanoes with widespread lava flows have been witnessed by these Native Americans over the past 40,000 years, so their various cultural understandings and ceremonial responses to volcanism are grounded in experience. Pilgrimage is one example of a persistent ceremonial response to volcanic areas by Native American peoples. This analysis is based on 902 ethnographic interviews with Paiute elders conducted over decades by the authors. The Paiute response to volcanism is typical of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States but manifests itself uniquely in the geology of the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River. The analysis argues that these are heritage places and landscapes to be protected by the IUCN World Conservation Congress (IUCN 2024) which is where the world comes together to set priorities and drive conservation and sustainable development action. More than 9,000 people participated in the 2021 Congress in Marseille. Experts shared the latest science and best practices, and IUCN Members voted on 39 motions to guide humanity’s relationship with our planet for the decades ahead. Keywords: Volcanic cultural heritages, Geosites, Geoscapes, Geoheritage, Native Americans, Southern Paiutes aboriginal lands, Grand Canyon, Colorado River
A presentation on the historic and prehistoric use of resources at Isle Royale National Park. The... more A presentation on the historic and prehistoric use of resources at Isle Royale National Park. The complete report, which can be found in this collection, is titled 'The Isle Royale Folkefiskerisamfunn: Familier Som Levde Av Fiske: An Ethnohistory of the Scandinavian Folk Fishermen of Isle Royale National Park.'
Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage ter... more Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage terms like geoparks for research and management is discussed in a special issue of the journal Land entitled Geoparks, Geotrails, and Geotourism-Linking Geology, Geoheritage, and Geoeducation that was edited by Margaret Brocx and Vic Semeniuk [1]. They summarize the worldwide movement towards using these concepts to better understand heritage places that involve a number of geoparks and geotrails that have been established, e.g., UNESCO. Global Geoparks where the geology, geotours, and local economy are linked for the well-being of the local people and operate under the auspices of UNESCO, and National or State-oriented geoparks/geotrails where the geology is identified as significant and preserved in conservation estates and utilized for tours, education, and other commercial purposes. Well-designed and organized geoparks/geotrails provide valuable sites for geoeducation, including suitable localities for collecting minerals and fossils, and all types of geoparks/geotrails can function for geotourism. Geotours in geoparks/geotrails provide excellent opportunity for introducing the public and students to the wealth of information and history that the Earth has to offer and professional geologists to the diversity of Earth Science globally. This analysis contributes to our understanding of the UNESCO use of geoparks by demonstrating how Effigy Mounds National Monument (NM) and its surrounding ceremonial landscape fits into a broader discussion of multi-ethnic [Ethnicity is the social organization of cultural difference (Barth 1969). We use ethnic groups here to denote socially defined subdivisions of a common
People from western cultures have regularly viewed desert playas of the western United States as ... more People from western cultures have regularly viewed desert playas of the western United States as sterile and of little utility except for gathering salt or minerals. In line with this unimportant valuation of desert playas by western observers, many call the region "The Great American Wasteland" [1]. The region's culturally affiliated Native Americans, however, tend to view these playas as heritage areas extending back in deep time to the Pleistocene when they were filled with lakes, surrounded by wetlands, and drained by permanent streams. According to the University of Utah's Shoshoni Dictionary[2] (Shoshoni Language Project 2024), the Goshute people refer to themselves as the Newe[nɨwɨ] or Newenee [nɨwɨnɨɨ] meaning the Person or the People. There have been times throughout their history where they have been referred to as Kutsipiuti (Gutsipiuti) or Kuttuhsippeh which translates to "People of the dry earth" or "People of the Desert" (literally: "dust, dry ashes People") [1,3]. Goshute means people covered with dust, dusty people, or desert, terms which were reiterated generations later in Halmo et al. [4]. In the same study, contemporary Goshute people who are fluent in their language use the term in reference to the white alkali dust that lines the lowest portions of most valleys [4,5]. Our analysis explains why the playa dust symbolizes heritage connections with the land and past lives. Native American heritage perspectives regarding playas are required in national searches for places to drop bombs, make landing strips for large military aircraft, build industrial scale solar arrays, and mine rare earth minerals, including lithium.
Natural Science and Indigenous Knowledge: the American Experience, 2023
Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and... more Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and speaking with them. They have always lived in a living university, so there has never been a time when they have not been seeking information from the environment, testing their interpretations of what they observe, and formulating conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
Devils Tower is located in Wyoming, USA. It is composed of volcanic elements from the Tertiary Pe... more Devils Tower is located in Wyoming, USA. It is composed of volcanic elements from the Tertiary Period of geologic time. Geologists are interested in this geosite because it is a unique, upstanding, steep-sided, high-relief exhumed Tertiary-age volcanic plug. As a Native cultural geosite, however, it is often called Mateo Tepe, and it is a sacred place to over 20 Native American tribes. It was inscribed as America's first national monument in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt, which was argued because of its special geology. It is visually dramatic due to its columns, which are understood by earth scientists as a wonder of geology, but by Native people as the claw scratches of a spiritual bear. These vertical cracks are the focus of rock climbers and Native people, respectively as opportunities for adventure and self-fulfillment and spiritual paths to another dimension and the achievement of religious balance in the world. Mateo Tepe became a national monument due to it being a unique geologic feature. The geopark concept is used in this analysis to talk about this geologically based monument.
This is a data-based analysis of how Native American interpretations of their distant past are be... more This is a data-based analysis of how Native American interpretations of their distant past are being considered reflecting new science findings. A key science understanding developed over the past 75 years has been that Native people did not occupy North America (or any place in the so-called New World) longer than 12,000 years before present (BP), thus they could neither have experienced nor understood any event in the late Pleistocene interglacial period (128,000 BP to 11,700 BP). As called in this analysis, the Clovis glass ceiling references the popular use of Clovis spear points to represent the earliest signs of humans in North America with dates generally later than 12,000 BP. This analysis engaged with recent science findings that Native people were present in North America up to 40,000 years ago. Opening the science limits of Native presence affords a reinterpretation of the past using extant Native interpretations. As an example, Salt Spring near Death Valley is a component of an ancient Pleistocene heritage landscape that can be reconstructed using geology and Native American interpretations. Native American perspectives were derived from 404 ethnographic interviews with Numic speaking peoples, focused on 24 ancient springs near Death Valley,
Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage ter... more Background The most current understanding of the UNESCO preference for using geology heritage terms like geoparks for research and management is discussed in a special issue of the journal Land entitled Geoparks, Geotrails, and Geotourism-Linking Geology, Geoheritage, and Geoeducation that was edited by Margaret Brocx and Vic Semeniuk [1]. They summarize the worldwide movement towards using these concepts to better understand heritage places that involve a number of geoparks and geotrails that have been established, e.g., UNESCO. Global Geoparks where the geology, geotours, and local economy are linked for the well-being of the local people and operate under the auspices of UNESCO, and National or State-oriented geoparks/geotrails where the geology is identified as significant and preserved in conservation estates and utilized for tours, education, and other commercial purposes. Well-designed and organized geoparks/geotrails provide valuable sites for geoeducation, including suitable localities for collecting minerals and fossils, and all types of geoparks/geotrails can function for geotourism. Geotours in geoparks/geotrails provide excellent opportunity for introducing the public and students to the wealth of information and history that the Earth has to offer and professional geologists to the diversity of Earth Science globally. This analysis contributes to our understanding of the UNESCO use of geoparks by demonstrating how Effigy Mounds National Monument (NM) and its surrounding ceremonial landscape fits into a broader discussion of multi-ethnic [Ethnicity is the social organization of cultural difference (Barth 1969). We use ethnic groups here to denote socially defined subdivisions of a common
Natural science and indigenous knowledge : the Americas experience, 2024
Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and... more Native Americans study their environment for many reasons but importantly because it is alive and speaking with them. They have always lived in a living university, so there has never been a time when they have not been seeking information from the environment, testing their interpretations of what they observe, and formulating conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
The research presented in this document builds upon the ethnohistoric, ethnographic, ethnobotanic... more The research presented in this document builds upon the ethnohistoric, ethnographic, ethnobotanical and ethnozoological information that was discussed in the first Black Mountain study. The lands of the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR) were traditionally occupied and used by the Numic people.
The purpose of this study is to provide an ethnohistoric and ethnographic assessment of selected ... more The purpose of this study is to provide an ethnohistoric and ethnographic assessment of selected contemporary communities along the Old Spanish Trail.
A new volcano erupted in the eleventh century AD in the San Francisco volcanic field, which has a... more A new volcano erupted in the eleventh century AD in the San Francisco volcanic field, which has as many as 80 old volcanoes and 600 eruption cones all centered around Flagstaff, Arizona. This volcanic landscape has been a cultural center for Native American spiritual activities for up to 23,000 years. During that time, they have come to perceive volcanoes as earth navels and thus places where the earth is reborn. For this reason, the emergence of an active volcano, called Sunset Crater, drew pilgrims and resulted in the construction of ceremonial and support communities surrounding a place called Wupatki. This paper is partially based on a 2004 study funded by the U.S. National Park Service, which produced 80 ethnographic interviews with representatives of six Native American ethnic groups composed of 12 tribes and pueblos. The analysis is informed by a total of 23 ethnographic studies of volcanoes conducted with Native Americans by the authors. In all studies, Native American parti...
Proceedings of the Society for Applied Anthropology, 1976
Society for Applied Anthropology conference. On the topic of the history of ethnographic impact a... more Society for Applied Anthropology conference. On the topic of the history of ethnographic impact assessment with Native Americans since 1970s when the first NA EIS was conducted.
The ethnographic overview documents the contemporary values of American Indians regarding Fajada Butte. The study defines which Indian tribes have traditional or historic cultural ties to Fajada Butte and Chaco Culture NHP (Fig. 1.3). The term traditionally associated tribes has been suggested to..., 1994
The ethnographic overview documents the contemporary values of American Indians regarding Fajada ... more The ethnographic overview documents the contemporary values of American Indians regarding Fajada Butte. The study defines which Indian tribes have traditional or historic cultural ties to Fajada Butte and Chaco Culture NHP. The term traditionally associated tribes has been suggested to refer to tribes that have cultural ties to the park and desire a formal consultation relationship with the park. Our study was complemented by an extensive ethnohistorical report, conducted by Wozniak, Brugge, and Lange (1993). Their report, entitled An Ethnohistorical Summary of Ceremonial and Other Traditional Uses of Fajada Butte and Related Sites at Chaco Cultural National Historical Park was prepared for the National Park Service as a background for the ethnographic assessment of Fajada Butte. This work is a detailed bibliographic survey of historical and traditional connections between contemporary Pueblo and Navajo tribes and Chaco Canyon. It evaluates the published evidence of traditional use of Fajada Butte and other ceremonial places in Chaco Canyon. This report was a useful source of information for this participating tribal governments and the NPS land managers.
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Papers by Richard W I L L I A M Stoffle
Indians that present an evaluation of the cultural and natural resources of Fajada Butte that they use and value, and an assessment of the needs of American Indian communities for plant materials from within Chaco Culture NHP in order to continue with their traditional and ceremonial practices. As such, this study emphasizes those resources defined by American Indians as having ceremonial and legendary significance. The study was funded by the National Park Service on September 15, 1992, and was managed by the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. The ethnographic overview is focused on two broad issues: (1) Fajada Butte and its significance to American Indian people and (2) the traditional use of plants and their cultural significance to American Indian people. An additional goal of this study is to contribute information about the process of tribal-park consultation including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)..
conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
Indians that present an evaluation of the cultural and natural resources of Fajada Butte that they use and value, and an assessment of the needs of American Indian communities for plant materials from within Chaco Culture NHP in order to continue with their traditional and ceremonial practices. As such, this study emphasizes those resources defined by American Indians as having ceremonial and legendary significance. The study was funded by the National Park Service on September 15, 1992, and was managed by the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office. The ethnographic overview is focused on two broad issues: (1) Fajada Butte and its significance to American Indian people and (2) the traditional use of plants and their cultural significance to American Indian people. An additional goal of this study is to contribute information about the process of tribal-park consultation including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)..
conservation behaviors that positively reflect what they and their environment want from each other. Whether this process is termed Native science or culturally sensitive natural interactions, it is a pattern that is typical of the Native American people, who have participated in more than 136 ethnographic studies conducted by the authors. Paiute science is illustrated using ethnographic findings from forty-four field studies and the lived experiences of one of the authors.
National Historical Park was prepared for the National Park Service as a background for the ethnographic assessment of Fajada Butte. This work is a detailed bibliographic survey of historical and traditional connections between contemporary Pueblo and Navajo tribes and Chaco Canyon. It evaluates the published evidence of traditional use of Fajada Butte and other ceremonial places in Chaco Canyon. This report was a useful source of information for this participating tribal governments and the NPS land managers.