Humans and the Environment in the
Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor
Cultural Ecology of Eastern Pennsylvania provides teachers and students with a cultural/ecological perspective of patterns of landscape change in the Lehigh and Delaware valleys of eastern Pennsylvania, by investigating the interconnections and cause-effect relationships between humans and the environment.
The multi-disciplinary curriculum includes five units that span the course of 16,000 years, beginning with the arrival of the first humans in Pennsylvania and the subsequent development of Native American culture. The curriculum progresses to European settlement, the 19th century Industrial Revolution, and 20th century industry. Unit 5 examines the reclamation of damaged natural resources, through environmental awareness and laws that mandate the protection of water, air and land. The unit concludes with a detailed look at current environmental issues that pose a threat to eastern Pennsylvania and the rest of the planet.
