Director:
Anabel FordUCSB Affiliated Anthropology Faculty
Director:
Anabel FordAnabel Ford has distinguished herself in Mesoamerican archaeology with research on the evolution of settlement and environment patterns, demystifying traditional views of the ancient Maya by examining the human aspects of this glamorous civilization.
Using anthropology as a springboard for interdisciplinary research, she proposes ancient traditions yield contemporary solutions for the Maya forest of Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico. "Action Archaeology" is a term she has uses to describe how her focus on cultural ecology- the multifaceted relationships of humans and their environment - is being applied at El Pilar to benefit of contemporary populations. The co-evolution of human societies and the environment bring particular relevance to the study of Maya prehistory. At El Pilar, Ford is advancing programs that simulate the forest-as-a-garden, an alternative to resource-diminishing, pioneering slash-and-burn farming methods.
Research has examined the detailed construction chronology of the major regional Maya center of El Pilar, the mapped extent of which spans across the contended international boundary between Belize and Guatemala. With funding from a wide variety of sources, large scale excavations were launched in the southern public sector of El Pilar, revealing an extraordinarily long prehistory beginning before 600BC and running through 1000 AD.
The principal focus of the archaeological research remains the residential components. Settlement survey, topographic mapping, archaeological testing, and full scale excavations of small architectural structures, that number greater than 200 per sq. km, underscore the importance of the populace of Maya city centers. A visit to El Pilar features Tzunu'un, the Maya house and forest garden, where you get a feeling that people actually lived there.
The El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna, established in Belize in 95 and Guatemala in 98, promotes a model of cultural heritage program, nature conservation, and community development that relies on collaboration of local villagers, nations of the region, and international scholars around the globe to bring the vision to fruition.
International meetings held within the region from 1996 to the present have brought scholars, managers, attorneys, and communities together in designing and planning the El Pilar archaeological reserve. With the support of local villagers, national planners, regional eco-tourism enterprises, and interdisciplinary researchers, the El Pilar has come to symbolize the human component. This is the essence of the past developments, the present concerns and the future of our world's resources.
These public outreach efforts have brought El Pilar into the spotlight, and voluntary philanthropic groups such as EarthKind, Raliegh International, and Global Roots have committed interests in the reserve. Press coverage of the El Pilar Archaeological Reserve and Program has been extensive in Mesoamerica countries as well as in the US and Europe.
Upper Division Courses