The challenges of climate change and sea-level rise for humans are nothing new to Florida. Evenings at Whitney lecture explores how ancient Floridians dealt with sea level rise. ridians. Since the end of the Ice Age, rising water has shaped culture change for hundreds of generations of Native American ancestors. As water levels rose, dwellings were inundated and ancient Floridians were forced to find new places to settle and new ways to subsist. But what became of their belief systems and the ritual practices that rationalized their place in the world? Archaeological evidence for the ceremonial practices of ancient Floridians suggests that the ritual practices of native people, like the practices of everyday living, were responsive to changes in ecology and geography. At the same time, sacred beliefs about water and watery creatures seem to have remained intact. This pattern of “persistence through change” is illustrated in the archaeological record of the pond cemeteries and shell mounds of northeast Florida. Encased in this record of ancient ritual experience are lessons that may help us cope with our own environmental challenges.

This unique way of looking at sea level rise will be presented by Kenneth E. Sassaman, Ph.D., the Hyatt and Cici Brown Professor of Florida Archaeology in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Florida. His Evenings at Whitney lecture will be December 10 at 7:00 p.m. in the Center for Marine Studies at the Whitney Lab. Dr. Sassaman’s research in Florida has centered on the mid-Holocene hunter-gatherers of the middle St. Johns River Valley, notably on the circumstances surrounding the construction of some of the oldest shell mounds in North America. In 2009, Sassaman launched the Lower Suwannee Archaeological Survey to develop data on coastal living pertinent to the challenges of sea-level rise today. He is the author or editor of eight books and over 90 articles, chapters, and monographs.

The Evenings at Whitney lectures usually occur on the first or second Thursday of each month depending on the speaker and are always held at 7:00 p.m. in the Whitney Lab’s Center for Marine Studies. Monthly presentations include current science topics, plus subjects from on-going research programs at the Whitney Lab. Speakers are recognized experts in their fields who welcome questions and discussion. All lectures are free and open to the public. There is no charge for parking and reservations are not necessary.

Please visit www.whitney.ufl.edu for lecture schedules or contact the Whitney Lab at (904) 461-4000.