Essence of Anthropology

William A. Haviland is professor emeritus at the University of Vermont, where he founded the Department of Anthropology and taught for 32 years. He holds a PhD in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania. He has carried out original research in archaeology in Guatemala and Vermont; ethnography in Maine and Vermont; and physical anthropology in Guatemala. This work has been the basis of numerous publications in national and international books and journals, as well as in media intended for the general public. His books include The Original Vermonters, coauthored with Marjorie Power, and a technical monograph on ancient Maya settlement. He also served as consultant for the…  More award-winning telecourse Faces of Culture, and he is co-editor of the series Tikal Reports, published by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Besides teaching and writing, Dr. Haviland has lectured to many professional and nonprofessional audiences in Canada, Mexico, Lesotho, South Africa, and Spain, as well as in the United States. He served as expert witness for the Missisquoi Abenaki of Vermont in an important court case over aboriginal fishing rights. Dr. Haviland was named University Scholar by the Graduate School of the University of Vermont in 1990; received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Sovereign Republic of the Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi, St. Francis/Sokoki Band in 1996; and was given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Center for Research on Vermont in 2006. Now retired from teaching, he continues his research, writing, and lecturing from the coast of Maine. He serves as a trustee for the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, focused on Maine's Native American history, culture, art, and archaeology. His most recent books are At the Place of the Lobsters and Crabs (2009) and Canoe Indians of Down East Maine (2012).  Less

Dr. Dana Walrath is Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Vermont and a Women's Studies affiliated faculty member. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and is a medical and biological anthropologist with principal interests in biocultural aspects of reproduction, the cultural context of biomedicine, genetics, and evolutionary medicine. She directs an innovative educational program at the University of Vermont's College of Medicine that brings anthropological theory and practice to first year medical students. Before joining the faculty at the University of Vermont in 2000, she taught at the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University. Her…  More research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, Health Resources and Services Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and the Templeton Foundation. Dr. Walrath's publications have appeared in "Current Anthropology," "American Anthropologist" and "American Journal of Physical Anthropology". An active member of the Council on the Anthropology of Reproduction, she has also served on a national committee to develop women's health care learning and works locally to improve healthcare for refugees and immigrants.  Less

Bunny McBride is an award-winning author specializing in cultural anthropology, indigenous peoples, international tourism, and nature conservation issues. Published in dozens of national and international print media, she has reported from Africa, Europe, China, and the Indian Ocean. Holding an MA from Columbia University, she is highly rated as a teacher, and she has served as visiting anthropology faculty at Principia College and the Salt Institute for Documentary Field Studies. Since 1996, she has been an adjunct lecturer of anthropology at Kansas State University. Among her many publications are books such as Women of the Dawn; Molly Spotted Elk: A Penobscot in Paris; Indians in Eden…  More (with Harald Prins); and The Audubon Field Guide to African Wildlife, which she coauthored. McBride also has authored numerous book chapters. Honors include a special commendation from the state legislature of Maine for significant contributions to Native women's history. As an activist and researcher for the Aroostook Band of Micmacs (1981-1991), she assisted this Maine Indian community in its successful efforts to reclaim lands, gain tribal status, and revitalize cultural traditions. In recent years, she has served as co-principal investigator for a National Park Service ethnography project and curated several museum exhibits, including "Journeys West: The David & Peggy Rockefeller American Indian Art Collection" for the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, Maine. Her latest exhibit, "Indians & Rusticators," received a 2012 Leadership in History Award from the American Association for State and Local History. Currently, she serves as president of the Women's World Summit Foundation based in Geneva, Switzerland, and is completing a collection of essays.  Less