Caribbean history

• Environmental disaster


  An event that affects human and animal life
• The destruction of coral reefs is considered an environmental disaster
• Coral reefs


  • A living community of tiny marine creatures called coral polyps
  • They secrete a limestone or calcium carbonate shell around their bodies which remains when they die
  • The shells become cemented together to form the structure of the reef
  • The reef structure is rich in food supply and is a haven where many types of flora and fauna find refuge
• Coral reefs are located mainly in the tropical and subtropical latitudes
• Major hazards faced by coral reefs

  • Hurricanes
  • Earthquakes
  • Volcanic eruptions
• Coral reefs have recently faced destruction from humans
• Soil erosion


  When too much soil erodes into rivers, it usually ends up in the sea, where the silt produced covers and kills the coral
• Conditions for coral reef growth

  • Salty, shallow water with a temperature measuring 68 F
  • Clear of sediments
  • Shallow water allows sunshine to penetrate
  • Inside each coral, algae grows which produces food and oxygen for the polyp, and the algae in turn feeds on the waste products produced by the polyp
  • Turbidity (muddy water) affects the efficiency of this process and the amount of sunlight reaching the reef
• Coral reefs will not be found where large rivers bring large amounts of sediment to the sea, such as in the coastal waters of Guyana
• Types of reefs found in the Caribbean

  • Barrier reefs
  • Fringing reefs
  • Coral atolls
• Barrier reefs


  • The second largest barrier reef is found in Belize, stretching some 200 miles and separated from land by a lagoon 10-20 miles wide
  • Another barrier reef measuring 120 miles is located east of the island of Andros on the Bahamas
  • The longest barrier reef, the Great Barrier Reef, is located off the east coast of Australia and stretches over 1200 miles
• Fringing reefs


  • More common in the Caribbean, occurring around or partially around most islands
  • Built by corals growing on shallow rocks near the shore and gradually extending seawards
  • Waves break on these reefs, ensuring a calm lagoon or stretch of sea between the reef and the coastline
• Fringing reefs


  • The Buccoo reefs off the coast of Tobago
• Coral atolls


  • Coral islands, almost circular in shape, built around a central lagoon
  • Formed when coral grow around the crater of sinking volcanoes
  • Found in the hundreds of islands forming the barrier reef off Belize
• Types of corals found in reefs

  • Hard coral
  • Black coral
  • Stony coral
  • Soft coral
  • Sea plumes
  • Sea fans
• Coral reefs and society and culture

  • Through their biodiversity, supporting immense marine life and having the potential to produce new medicines
  • Through tourism, with reefs providing beautiful colors and shapes that attract visitors
  • Through fisheries, sustaining valuable fisheries that Caribbean fishermen depend on
  • Through coastal protection, acting as barriers and breaking the force of waves
• The AZT drug used to treat AIDS was developed from chemicals found in sponge fish in the Caribbean reefs
• The barrier reef of Belize has been designated a world heritage site by UNESCO, and in Carriacou the oyster bed there has been deemed a protected area
• Cultural hybridization


  The process of cultural change and mixing
• Eco-tourism


  Tourism focused on the natural environment
• Effects of cultural change

  1. Erasure

  2. Retention

  3. Renewal
• All cultures are influenced by and at the same time influence other cultures
• Natural threats to coral reefs include ENSO events, global warming, and dust blown across the Atlantic from the Sahara in Africa
• Culture changes and it is non-static, in a constant state of flux, driven by both internal and external forces
• Human threats to coral reefs

  • Inland activities like quarries causing sediment reaching rivers and turbidity
  • Building of marinas, hotels and urban settlements disturbing the coastal ecosystem
  • Harvesting coral for building material
  • Improper sewage disposal causing algae growth
  • Industrial and agricultural effluents poisoning the reefs
  • Hot water emissions from power plants leading to bleaching
  • Overfishing and destructive fishing methods
  • Trampling by tourists
• Culture change can be peaceful and voluntary or involuntary due to conflict, force or domination
• New ideas and changing societies impact present cultural practices, and culture acts on us through this dynamic relationship
• Material culture


  The products of a people, including architecture, food preparation, economic organization, and technology
• Non-material culture


  The cherished ideas, beliefs, values and norms, which have become tangible in the form of behaviors and material objects
• Non-material culture is more difficult to trace than material culture
• Cultural erasure


  Practices that have died out due to tension between traditional and modern ways
• Cultural erasure


  • Patois dying out, basket weaving, sewing by hand, and storytelling
• Colonial experiences


  Have shaped how we interact with our land
• Aboriginal people's perspectives


  Considered places sacred and left untouched
• Cultural retention


  Specific aspects of a culture that survive, even if not in their intact form
• European settlers' perspectives


  Did not regard the land in the same way, their technology allowed them to control the land in ways unimaginable to produce food
• The way we impact our environment has to do with our views about the land, the importance of mankind and progress, and our spiritual beliefs
• Environmental hazards


  • Hurricane
  • Soil erosion
  • Volcanic eruptions
  • Earthquakes
  • Droughts
• Cultural retention


  • Traditional basket weaving among the Caribs, Garifuna culture in Belize, preservation of French architecture in Dominica, celebration of festivals and holidays
• Environmental hazards


  Only termed hazards when they have the potential to destroy human life and property, otherwise termed natural events