Dissertation Research: Storied Shores: Environment, Society, and Culture in Monterey, California

University Of Washington, Seattle WA

Investigators

Abstract

This dissertation research project, "Storied Shores: Environment, Society and Culture in Monterey, California," explores the role of science and technology in the shaping of nature and society in Monterey from the late nineteenth century to the 1980s. "Storied Shores" charts how the individuals who converged on Monterey used their particular social and cultural values to evaluate, envision, and mold the natural environment. The research explores how material changes to Monterey reflected and shaped how people used and understood nature. Contests over shaping nature sharpened existing social divisions while affecting how individuals physically changed their natural surroundings. Scientific ideas and technological systems, moreover, helped to moderate these changes in the land. Working, playing, and studying in nature became the most prominent activities on the Monterey coastline. Labor, recreation, science, and technology, therefore, intersected in the shaping of Monterey's nature and society. This project proposes to add to a growing synthesis of environmental history and science and technology studies by examining the social construction of nature, science, and technology and exploring their effects on and implications for Monterey society and its coastline. The project will also make a more immediate contribution by assisting scientists and planners interested in the marine environment. The political, social, and economic activities of humans and developments in science and technology affect the natural world. This research intends to bring these impacts to light and provide important information for future research by creating a historical baseline for measuring human impact on the coastline.