2024

Project Assignment: During the summer of 2024, Preservation Institute Nantucket (PIN) explored the island’s Intangible Cultural Heritage at Risk: the rituals and traditions passed down through generations and connected to specific place. From cranberry harvesting to scalloping, fishing, and agricultural practices, the students explored the very essence of island life which are now at risk of being lost due to climate, economy and policy. The PIN students worked alongside local holders of the traditions and ecological knowledge, diving deep into the history and evolution of these cherished parts of Nantucket.

The students evaluated the intangible cultural heritage using the UNESCO framework for safeguarding these traditions on a global scale. This framework depends on community input and interest and seeks to list those traditions, knowledge, or rituals that are most connected to local cultural communities. Additionally, the students used a Cultural Historic Landscape framework to evaluate the places connected to intangible cultural heritage traditions and as a tool for recommending protections, evaluations, or educational opportunities. A Cultural Historic Landscape is an area where the natural environment has interacted with human activity and can either be organically evolved over time, intentionally designed, or have a strong association for the community.

Many factors are placing the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Nantucket at risk–rising costs of living on the island, climate change and warming seas, loss of habitat, and the loss of generational knowledge keepers. Without documentation, evaluation, and educational opportunities, these aspects that define the island’s way of life could potentially be irreversibly lost. Join us as we uncover the stories that contribute to the island’s special heritage.

Students and Faculty

Ellie Allen, Randolph College 
Delaney Cecere, University of Florida 
Lee Fuhrman, Dominican University  
Anthea Grant, University of Florida 
Mia Sadler, Florida State University  
Vineeta Tanted, World Heritage USA International Exchange Program Intern
Mackennah Tarmey, University of North Florida 

Dr. Cleary Larkin, Director
Erica Mollon, Co-Director
Cameron Cantine, PIN Intern

Visiting Faculty and Guest Lecturers

John McRae, PIN Faculty Emeritus and University of Tennessee College of Architecture and Design Professor Emeritus 
Jude Grissom, Artist and Writer 
Matthew Kuhnert, Reference Archivist, Nantucket Historical Association 
Rita Carr, Deputy Director, Nantucket Preservation Trust 
Mary Bergman, Executive Director, Nantucket Preservation Trust 
Neil Foley, Interpretive Education Coordinator/Ecologist, Nantucket Conservation Trust 
Nicholas J. Larrabee, Director of Land Management, Nantucket Conservation Trust 
Tom Larrabee, Jr., former Cranberry Bog Manager 
Rob Benchley, Photographer and Author 
Abby Slosek and Steve Slosek, Moors End Farm 
Posie Constable, Managing Director, Sustainable Nantucket 
Griffin Harkins, Assistant Biologist. Town of Nantucket, Brant Point Hatchery 
Tara Riley, Shellfish and Aquatic Resources Manager, Town of Nantucket, Brant Point Hatchery 
Ray Owen, Berry Patch Farm 
John Bartlett, President and CEO, Bartlett’s Farm 
Dr. Sarah Bois, Director of Research and Education, Linda Loring Nature Foundation 
Lauren Merski, Senior Teacher Naturalist, Mass Audubon Islands  
Daniel Sutherland, Washashore Farm, Sustainable Nantucket 
Dr. Heather Gibson, Professor and Associate Director, University of Florida 
 Ginger Andrews, Fifth-Generation Nantucketer, Field Ornithologist, Maria Mitchell Association 
Dr. Clarissa Carr, Research Assistant Professor, University of Florida 
Mary Kay Judy, Architectural & Cultural Heritage Conservation 
Dr. Nicholas Serrano, Assistant Professor, University of Florida 
Jeffrey (Free) Harris, Historian & Historic Preservation Consultant 
Charles (Chip) Sullivan, Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture & Environmental Planning, Berkeley College of Environmental Design 
Elizabeth Boults, Continuing Lecturer, Landscape Architecture + Environmental Design, UC Davis 
Tony Dumitru, Museum Collections and Exhibitions Manager, Egan Maritime Shipwreck and Lifesaving Museum 
Holly Backus, Preservation Planner, Town of Nantucket