Chesapeake Uncharted

Connor Tupponce, a member of the Upper Mattaponi and Chickahominy tribes, discusses his work promoting tribal consultation in environmental and land-use matters in Virginia. Indigenous voices are crucial in managing public lands, he says. That's especially true at Werowocomoco, the recently rediscovered site along the York River that was once the seat of the Powhatan Confederacy.

Ron Lopez is a researcher in wetlands ecology at Virginia Commonwealth University who is part of a team breaking ground on our understanding of potentially toxic algae blooms in the Shenandoah River. His efforts toward developing remote-sensing methods to map those slilmy blooms are the basis of his ongoing doctoral thesis. So, yes, we will be talking about drones. Lopez also discusses his atypical path into academia. 

Symone Barkley, a Baltimore native, is a recipient of the North American Association for Environmental Education’s "30 Under 30 Award," which recognizes young leaders in the field worldwide. And she’s a fellow traveler in the podcast world, hosting a podcast series for her employer, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. That would be “Planet NOAA." Here, she discusses the state of environmental education in America and what can be done to get kids more interested in nature studies. Barkley also talks about the kits she has developed providing kids with hands-on, STEM-based activities. More info about the kits is available here. 

The Pennsylvania 4-H chapter has named Grace Ziegmont as one of its state project ambassadors. These are members who provide guidance to 4-H staff statewide on programming and projects. The 16-year-old York County resident also serves as the president of the Governor’s Youth Council for Hunting, Fishing and Conservation. And we haven’t even gotten to her role in making historic change happen within a federal agency. 

Jay Fleming has devoted his life to documenting a dying way of life on the Chesapeake Bay. He has compiled his photographs of watermen into two popular books. His photographs, more than anyone else's, tell the tale of of the estuary's seafood industry. 

Helping others fall in love with nature is one of Maya Alexander's main passions. She is African American and has experienced first hand the challenges of engaging with the outdoors, a pasttime that has traditionally been associated with the white middle class. Yet, Alexander, a community engagement manager for Virginia's Alliance for the Shenandoah Valley, finds a way to keep moving forward in the face of adversity. We talked about her strategies for encouraging more diversity in outdoor pursuits. And she offered glimpses into how environmental organizations can take up causes for marginalized communities … without alienating them.

Noah Bressman, a Salisbury University researcher, has quickly made a name for himself as a marine biology researcher and a science communicator. He’s active on social media. He organizes fishing tournaments that incorporate environmental education. He envisions a world with fewer invasive fish in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries -- a world made possible by people making subtle shifts to their diets. 

In early 2023, Carmera Thomas-Wilhite joined the Chesapeake Bay region’s most influential environmental group, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, as its first vice president for diversity, equity, inclusion and justice. How’d she get there? What’s her mission? Find out in our conversation.

Anna Killius is a political wrangler. Her formal title: executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission. She occupies a space with few peers in American politics: a regional influencer of environmental policy with her sights set on a single watershed. Here, she discusses how she builds consensus -- and steers clear of infighting -- to drive better results for the cleanup of America's largest estuary.

If anyone has the word "mentor" written all over them, it's Randy Rowel. He coordinates the Chesapeake Research Consortium's C-StREAM (Chesapeake Student Recruitment, Early Advisement, and Mentoring) program, helping to guide people of color into green careers. He talks with us about how the environmental sector can bring more diversity into its ranks and, in turn, be more effective in underserved communities.