a journey of intellectual inquiry
university of north carolina wilmington
re:search
Caribbean Research &
Instructional Portfolio
For the researchers from the University of North Carolina
Wilmington, the Caribbean is no vacation. From studying ways
to prevent the decline of the region’s coral reefs to providing
medicine to poor villagers to unearthing the history of vanished
civilizations, the university’s faculty, staff and students have
spent decades expanding the world’s understanding of the
region and finding ways to improve the lives of its residents
and the health of its ecosystem.
UNCW and its scholars have extensive experience in
the region. Scholars like the Center for Marine Science’s
Alina Szmant – who became one of the first female aquanauts
by spending almost a month underwater in the undersea
habitat Tektite II off the coast of St. Johns in 1970 – have
explored the waters of the region for decades. UNCW’s first
formal exchange program was with the Universidad Nacional
in Heredia Costa Rica in 1989. Since the university first began
working in the Caribbean, hundreds of undergraduates – like
the archaeology students excavating the ruins of Mayan
civilizations in Belize – have received their first hands-on
field research experience there.
Located less than three hours of flight time from North
Carolina, the Caribbean offers UNCW a unique living laboratory
for researchers and students. The Caribbean Sea encompasses
more than 7,000 islands and 30 nations or territories – including the
Central American nations with coastlines on the sea – provid-ing
a unique living laboratory for UNCW. More than 8 percent
of the world’s coral reefs lie beneath its waters and it is home
to more than 70 species of coral and more than 700 species
of reef fishes. The inland ecosystems range from rain forest
jungles to arid deserts and offer an astounding biodiversity,
earning it a designation as one of Conservation International’s
biodiversity hotspots. The peoples of the region speak English,
French, Spanish, Dutch and a variety of creole languages such
as Haitian and Papiamento.
The university currently has active research underway
in more than 24 nations in the region. This map explores many
of the projects currently underway. Professors and students
from disciplines as diverse as film studies to geology and
geography have traveled to the region to research the islands
and neighboring Central American nations, their inhabitants
and the ecology of the land and surrounding oceans. Data
collected by UNCW’s researchers are helping map earthquake
zones, determine the effects of climate change on native
species and track the history of native peoples.
Together with partners like NOAA, the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institute and the Florida Keys National Marine
Sanctuary, the university’s leadership in Caribbean research
played a role in building UNCW’s national reputation, especially
part of its world-leading marine biology program. Projects like
the Aquarius underwater habitat – which the university has
operated since the 1980s – the university’s commitment to
the region will ensure that scholars will continue to enrich
the world’s understanding of the diverse inhabitants
of the region.
Deep Expertise
UNCW Researchers Delve into the Caribean
Joseph Pawlik, professor of marine biology, and his team of
researchers are studying sponges, animals that are far more
prominent than corals in modern reef systems in the Caribbean.
Pawlik’s team is focused on many aspects of sponge life in the
reef including spread of a diseased called Sponge Orange-Band
(SOB). SOB derives its name from the orange band that develops
around a disease sponge and disintegrates the organism.
The disease spreads even to the reefs’ oldest sponges,
felling sponges that have lived as long as 2,300 years.
■ Anguilla
Mineralogical and petrological
variations of prehistoric ceramic shards.
Michael Smith, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/smithms
■ Bahamas
Meteorological observation network
connecting climate data to geological
processes, microbiology of inland lakes,
distribution of invasive tree species and
island water resource development.
Dr. Doug Gamble, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/gambled
Assessing the chemical defenses
of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Barbados
Economic value of coastal and
marine resources.
Pete Schumann, Economics and Finance
www.csb.uncw.edu/people/schuhmannp
■ Belize
Assessing the chemical defenses
of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
Principal investigator on the Maya
Archaeometallurgy Project at Lamanai, Belize.
Archaeology field school at Lamania and
Marco Gonzalez, Ambergis Caye, Belize.
Scott Simmons, Anthropology
http://people.uncw.edu/simmonss
Integrated Community-Based Harpy
Eagle and Avian Conservation Program for
the Maya Mountains Massif.
Belize Foundation for Research and
Environmental Education.
James Rotenberg, Environmental Studies
www.bfreebz.org/
https://sites.google.com/site/rotenbergj/home
Environmental Research Institute,
University of Belize.
Martin Posey, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
www.eriub.org/
www.uncw.edu/bio/faculty_posey.htm
Environmental Research Institute,
University of Belize.
Jack Hall, Environmental Studies
http://people.uncw.edu/hallj/
www.eriub.org
Environmental legal issues
of onshore and offshore petroleum exploration.
Research into laws related to both
environmental protection and funding of
environmental efforts through PACT and
other entities. Internships in the environ-mental
field, including scientific, management,
sustainable business and tourism. Association
with University of Belize, Belize Ministry
of Tourism and Belize Environmental
Research Institute.
Robert Cutting, Environmental Studies
http://people.uncw.edu/cuttingr
Joint research program in the forest
reserves of Belize. Association with Galen
University, Belize.
Jeffrey Hill, Environmental Studies
http://people.uncw.edu/hillj
Field course in the Preservation
of Mayan art.
Vibeke Olsen, Art and Art History
www.uncw.edu/art/about-olsen.html#du/
adharg/home.html
International Teaching Field Experience,
San Pedro, Belize. UNCW education majors
are placed in a five-week exchange with
Belizean teachers, sharing teaching
methods and theory.
Dennis Kubasko, Instructional Technology,
Foundations and Secondary Education
http://people.uncw.edu/kubaskod/international.html
International Teaching Field Experience,
San Pedro, Belize. UNCW education majors
are placed in a five-week exchange with
Belizean teachers, sharing teaching
methods and theory.
Susan Catapano, Educational Leadership
http://people.uncw.edu/catapanos
International Teaching Field Experience,
San Pedro, Belize, Shooting a documentary
film on the Belize/UNCW teacher exchange.
William Bolduc, Communication Studies
http://people.uncw.edu/bolducw
The role of water flow in
structuring reef communities and how it
affects coral bleaching and reef suspension
feeders such as sponges, corals and fishes.
Christopher Finelli, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/finellic
■ Bonaire
Assessing the chemical defenses
of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Colombia
Recovering and narrating the
marginalized history of this Colombian
archipelago through an examination of the
Columbian novel, No Give Up, Maan! (2002),
by Hazel Robinson Abrahams.
Christopher C. Dennis,
Foreign Languages and Literatures
www.uncw.edu/fll/UNCWCollegeofArtsScience
ForeignLanguagesLiteratures-FacultyDennisC.
html
■ Costa Rica
Marketing principles immersion field
experience in Costa Rica. Partnered with the
Costa Rican Humanitarian Foundation.
Lisa Scribner, Marketing
http://csbapp.csb.uncw.edu/data/fs/vita.
aspx?id=8349
Research and instruction in
music education for K-12 students and their
teachers using the Orff-Schulwerk approach.
Sponsored by the Universidad Nacional
de Costa Rica, Universidad de Costa Rica,
Foro Costarricense de Educación Musical
and Colegio Metodista.
Daniel C. Johnson, Music
www.uncw.edu/music/johnsond
Late-Holocene environmental
change in Central America and the circum-
Caribbean. Tracking prehistoric maize
cultivation using stable isotope analyses of
lake sediments, assessing the impacts of
rapid climate change on prehistoric human
populations and the impacts of global
climate change.
Chad Lane, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/lanec
■ CUBA
Soaring with Fidel. Following migratory
ospreys in the Caribbean.
David Gessner, Creative Writing
www.uncw.edu/writers/faculty_gessner.html
Cuban film and media.
Mariana Johnson, Film Studies
http://www.uncw.edu/filmstudies/faculty/
johnson-mariana.html
Caribbean literature, Afro-Hispanic
narrative and contemporary Hispanic
literature written by women.
Emmanuel Harris I,
Foreign Languages and Literatures
http://people.uncw.edu/harrise/index.htm
■ Curaca o
Ecology and geology of Caribbean
coral reefs.
Alina Szmant, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
www.uncwcuracaoreefs.blogspot.com
http://people.uncw.edu/szmanta
Ecology of Caribbean coral reefs.
Steve Ross, Center for Marine Science
www.uncw.edu/cms/bio.rosss.htm
Ecology of Caribbean coral reefs.
Sandra Brooke, Center for Marine Science
www.uncw.edu/cms
Assessing the chemical defenses
of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Dominican Republic
Late-Holocene environmental
change in Central America and the circum-
Caribbean. Tracking prehistoric maize
cultivation using stable isotope analyses of
lake sediments, assessing the impacts of
rapid climate change on prehistoric human
populations and the impacts of global
climate change.
Chad Lane, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/lanec
■ Haiti
Geographic Information Systems:
watershed modeling, coastal land use
development and the impacts on non-point
source pollution modeling.
Joanne Halls, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/hallsj
■ Jamaica
Online course development partnership
at Northern Caribbean University in
Mandeville, Jamaica.
Joseph M. Kishton, Psychology
The historical roots and cultural
traditions of Afro-Caribbean religions
Nathaniel Samuel Murrell,
Philosophy and Religion
http://people.uncw.edu/murrells
The double exposure and vulnerability
of farmers to globalization and climate
change in southwestern Jamaica.
Doug Gamble, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/gambled
Regional information and
communications technology.
Devon Simmonds, Computer Science
http://people.uncw.edu/simmondsd
■ Martinique
Assessing the chemical
defenses of Caribbean sponges.
Joe Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Mexico
Assessing the chemical
defenses of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Panama
Marine algal diversity of southern
Central America: Research training through
the development of a Panamanian
marine flora.
D. Wilson Freshwater, Center for Marine Science
Caribbean THE JAMAICA
Mexico
GUATEMALA
HONDURAS
EL SALVADOR NICARAGUA
COSTA
RICA
PANAMA
CUBA
UNITED
STATES
COLOMBIA
BELIZE
Cayman
Islands
G r e a t e r A n t Pacific Ocean
Florida Keys
Caribbean Research &
Instructional Portfolio ■
Gulf of Mexico
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Caribbean Sea
Atlantic Ocean
THE BAHAMAS
HAITI
DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC
Puerto Rico
COLOMBIA
VENEZUELA
t i l l i e s
L e s s e r A n t i l l i e s
Turks &
Caicos
Virgin Islands
Anguilla
St. Martin
Antigua and Barbuda
St. Johns
Guadeloupe
Dominica
Martinique
St. Croix
St. Lucia
Barbados
Grenada
St.
Vincent
Trinidad and
Tobago
Aruba
Bonaire
Curacao
Saint
Eustatius
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■ Puerto Rico
Applications of undersea
technologies to scientific research. Studies
of mesophotic coral reef ecosystems.
Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration,
Research and Technology
www.cioert.org
Mapping submarine faults to help
constrain the seismogenic and tsunamo-genic
potential of the northeastern North
American-Caribbean plate boundary.
Nancy Grindlay, Geography and Geology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/grindlayn
Linguistic variation in Spanish-speaking
countries of the Caribbean.
Amanda R. Boomershine,
Foreign Languages and Literatures
http://people.uncw.edu/boomershinea
Reproductive ecology and physi-ological
ecology of reef corals and nutrient
dynamics in tropical coastal systems.
Alina Szmant, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/szmanta
Management strategies adopted by
NOAA and the Florida Keys National Marine
Sanctuary trying to control populations
of lionfish, an invasive species, through
programs that encourage CATCH and EAT!
Jerome Naar, Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/naarj
Assessing the chemical
defenses of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
Sediment records of late-Holocene
environmental change and prehistoric
records of bioluminescence from coastal
lagoons.
Chad Lane, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/lanec
■ Saint Lucia
Assessing the chemical
defenses of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
■ Saint Eustatius
Assessing the chemical
defenses of Caribbean sponges.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlik
■ Trinidad and Tobago
Extractive and non-extractive
value of marine turtles in Tobago.
Pete Schumann, Economics and Finance
http://www.csb.uncw.edu/people/schuhmannp
■ United States Virgin Islands
Management strategies adopted by
NOAA and the Florida Keys National Marine
Sanctuary trying to control populations of
lionfish, an invasive species, through pro-grams
that encourage CATCH and EAT!
Jerome Naar, Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/naarj
■ St. Croix
Marine Research and Education Center.
Salt River Bay National Historical Park
and Ecological Preserve, St. Croix, USVI.
http://www.nps.gov/sari/index.htm
Applications of undersea
technologies to scientific
research. Studies of mesophotic coral reef
ecosystems.
Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration,
Research and Technology
http://www.cioert.org
Mineralogical and petrological
variation analysis of prehistoric pottery.
Michael Smith, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/smithms
Geographic Information Systems:
watershed modeling, coastal land use
development and the impacts on non-point
source pollution modeling.
Joanne Halls, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/hallsj
The effects of seawater temperature
on the physiology and behavior of sea
turtles.
Amanda Southwood Williard,
Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/williarda
Economic, environmental and
social impacts of tourism.
Nancy Hritz, Health and Applied Human Sciences
http://www.uncw.edu/hahs/NHritz.htm
Past and present climate of
the Salt River Bay watershed.
Doug Gamble, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/gambled
Past and present climate of the
Salt River Bay watershed. Modern and pre-historic
bioluminescence in Salt River Bay.
Chad Lane, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/lanec
Individual and community level
knowledge and preparation for tsunamis.
Jennifer Horan, Public and International Affairs
http://people.uncw.edu/horanj
Individual and community level
knowledge and preparation for tsunamis.
Stephen Meinhold, Public and International
Affairs
http://people.uncw.edu/meinholds
Effects of ocean currents on
reef fish population dynamics. Behavioral
interactions of reef fish.
Will White, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/whitejw
Seawater quality study at Salt River
Bay National Historical Park and Ecological
Preserve.
Bob Wicklund, UNCW
Seawater quality study at Salt River
Bay National Historical Park and Ecological
Preserve.
Ron Moore, Center for Marine Science
■ St. John
Mineralogical and petrological
variations of prehistoric ceramic shards.
Michael Smith, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/smithms
■ United States (Florida Keys)
Florida Bay Fish-Habitat
Assessment Program.
Michael Durako, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/durakom
Effects of ocean currents on
reef fish population dynamics. Behavioral
interactions of reef fish.
Will White, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/whitejw
The role of water flow in
structuring reef communities and how it
affects coral bleaching and reef suspension
feeders such as sponges, corals and fishes.
Christopher Finelli, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/finellic
Functions of unusual organic
compounds derived from Caribbean coral
reef sponges and sea whips. Ecology of
sponges on coral reefs.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
Management strategies adopted by
NOAA and the Florida Keys National Marine
Sanctuary trying to control populations of
lionfish, an invasive species, through pro-grams
that encourage CATCH and EAT!
Jerome Naar, Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/naarj
The Aquarius Reef Base mis-sion
is to serve as a national
asset for conducting marine
ecosystem science, long-term ecological
studies, coral observatory and sentinel site
science, undersea technology development,
extreme environment training and outreach
and education. The Aquarius undersea labo-ratory,
located 4.5 km offshore Key Largo,
Florida in 20 m of water, has been operated
by UNCW for the National Oceanic and Atmo-spheric
Administration since 1990 and is the
main component of the Reef Base.
Thomas A. Potts, Aquarius
http://aquarius.uncw.edu
Applications of undersea
technologies to scientific
research.
Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration
Research and Technology
http://www.cioert.org
■ Venezuela
Soaring with Fidel. Following migratory
ospreys in the Caribbean.
David Gessner, Creative Writing
www.uncw.edu/writers/faculty_gessner.html
Coral
Fish
Sponge
Weather
Humanities
ROV
Geology
Economy
Sea Turtle
Computer
Map
Archaeology
Terrestrial Biology
Tsunami
Music
Algae
Legal
Tree
Lionfish
(Invasive Species)
Water Quality
Research
Teaching
Icons
Underwater ocean laboratory
Key Largo, Fla.
http://aquarius.uncw.edu
Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration,
Research and Technology
www.cioert.org
The role of water flow in structuring
reef communities and how it affects coral
bleaching and reef suspension feeders such
as sponges, corals and fishes.
Christopher Finelli, Biology and Marine Biology
http://people.uncw.edu/finellic
Identification of the climatic processes
associated with the Caribbean mid-summer drought.
Doug Gamble, Geography and Geology
http://people.uncw.edu/gambled
Pre-colonization to modern era Caribbean
history with a specific focus on the Age of Sail.
William McCarthy, History
http://people.uncw.edu/mccarthyw
Speciation and population genetic
connectivity of Hypoplectrus coral reef fishes.
Michael McCartney, Biology and Marine Biology,
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/mccartneym
Management strategies adopted by NOAA
and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
trying to control populations of lionfish, an invasive
species, through programs that encourage
CATCH and EAT!
Dr. Jerome Naar, Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/naarj
Functions of unusual organic
compounds derived from Caribbean coral reef
sponges and sea whips. Ecology of sponges
on coral reefs.
Joseph Pawlik, Biology and Marine Biology,
Center for Marine Science
http://people.uncw.edu/pawlikj
Examination of energy flow and relation-ships
to animals to deep coral banks, canyon
systems and rocky areas.
Steve Ross, Center for Marine Science
http://www.uncw.edu/cms/bio.rosss.htm
Phylogenetics, biogeography and floristics
of western Atlantic and Caribbean marine algae.
D. Wilson Freshwater, Center for Marine Science
http://www.uncw.edu/cms
Operations of remotely and autono-mously
operated vehicles. Region-wide support
including multibeam bathymetry, fisheries,
geo-referenced habitat documentation, instrument
recovery and specialized instrument deployment.
Lance Horn, Center for Marine Science
http://www.uncw.edu/cms
Archaeology field school provides students
with hands-on experience excavating and cataloging
artifacts from indigenous Caribbean peoples.
Scott Simmons, Department of Anthropology
http://people.uncw.edu/simmonss/
UNCW Caribbean Research Supported by: