Event: WEDS TALKS: From Underwater Heritage Trails to Blue Economy: Understanding the Multiple Values of Submerged WWII Heritage in the Pacific

ABSTRACT: This presentation discusses a long-term research initiative centered on the identification, documentation, and interpretation of U.S. and Japanese World War II submerged heritage in the Mariana Islands. The project began as a Community Archaeology effort to develop a maritime heritage trail that would promote sustainable heritage tourism. Its outcomes included underwater guides, detailed site histories and plans, interpretive posters, and a dedicated website. Subsequent training in sustainable site use and the production of 2D and 3D underwater films expanded protection and outreach beyond the diving community.

Recent studies have expanded the project’s scope through the collection of eDNA samples to investigate site microbiomes and the processes of degradation and preservation, as well as sediment and water analyses to assess potential heavy metal contamination. Finally, oral histories and ethnographic research have illuminated the cultural significance and contemporary use of these sites, providing a holistic understanding of how submerged WWII heritage contributes to the Mariana Islands’ history, identity, and Blue Economy.

BIO: Dr. Jennifer McKinnon is an underwater and terrestrial archaeologist. She is a Professor in the Program in Maritime Studies at East Carolina University and received her MA and PhD in Anthropology from Florida State University and her BS from University of Florida. Her research focuses on battlefield and conflict archaeology (specifically WWII in the Pacific), Spanish exploration and colonization, Indigenous seascapes and traditional cultural places, and community and public archaeology practices. She has received grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Park Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and others. Her books include Underwater Archaeology of a Pacific Battlefield: The WWII Battle of Saipan (2015), It Rained Fire: Oral Histories from the Battle of Saipan (2019), and The Archaeology of American Shipwrecks (in press). She has directed research projects in the US, Caribbean, Europe, the Pacific, and Australia on sites ranging from Spanish colonial shipwrecks to WWII aircraft. She previously taught at Flinders University in South Australia and was a Senior Underwater Archaeologist for the State of Florida. She is the Past Chair of the Advisory Council on Underwater Archaeology.