Intense specialization in all fields of knowledge often precludes contact by scientists with common interests in environmental problems. A traditional vehicle for promoting cross disciplinary research on important topics is conferences organized around a specific scientific research theme. This project will assemble a group of recognized experts on all aspects of ecosystem research for the purpose of writing a comprehensive history of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. The project will focus on long run ecological change leading to present day problems facing the ecosystem, including both human and non-human causes of change. Two conferences will bring together recognized authorities to exchange ideas and research findings, and to produce a volume which concentrates of the human and natural forces shaping the Chesapeake ecosystem. The approach to this problem is important so that biological scientists across several specialties can assess problems of natural change, while historians and anthropologists can address the impact of human intervention. The result should be a benchmark study for both the Chesapeake Bay and for other efforts at comprehending the human and natural forces producing change in large embayments.
