Publications Authored By Richard Stoffle
Landscape Is Alive: Nuwuvi Pilgrimage and Power Places in Nevada
By Richard Stoffle, Richard Arnold & Kathleen Van Vlack
Published in Land (2022), Special Issue on Natural Landscape and Cultural Heritage
“Landscape Is Alive” explores the deep spiritual, cultural, and historical connections that Nuwuvi (Southern Paiute) and Newe (Western Shoshone) peoples maintain with the living landscapes of southern Nevada.
Drawing on an interdisciplinary environmental impact assessment with representatives from 18 Native nations, this study reveals how sacred places—established at the time of Creation—continue to guide cultural identity, ceremony, and stewardship. Within these cultural landscapes, power places, rock writings, offerings, and traditional narratives form interconnected networks much like pearls on a string, shaping ancient pilgrimage routes that link communities across the region.
Centered on a valley landscape between Pahranagat Valley and the Corn Creek oasis at the base of Nuvagantu (the Spring Mountains), this research documents a vibrant cultural geography that is both ancient and contemporary. It highlights the significance of these sacred corridors and raises critical concerns about potential threats posed by the expansion of military land and air use.
The article affirms a central truth shared by Nuwuvi and Newe elders: the landscape is not static—it is living, purposeful, and integral to the cultural survival of their people.
Toponym Disputes in Indigenous North America
Authored by Richard Stoffle (University of Arizona), Kathleen Van Vlack (Northern Arizona University), Simon Larsson (Uppsala University), and Yoko Kugo (University of Alaska Fairbanks), this research examines how place names—or toponyms—embody Indigenous peoples’ cultural, spiritual, and historical relationships with their lands. The study explores ongoing disputes over naming and renaming geographic sites across North America, revealing how these debates intersect with issues of sovereignty, identity, and cultural preservation. Through an interdisciplinary lens, the authors underscore the significance of restoring and respecting Indigenous place-based heritage.
At the Sea’s Edge: Elders and Children in the Littorals of Barbados and the Bahamas
Brent Stoffle (NOAA) & Richard W. Stoffle (University of Arizona)
Published in Human Ecology, Vol. 35(5): 547–558 (September 2007)
This study examines the enduring relationship between coastal communities and the “littoral”—the cultural and ecological edge of the sea—in Barbados and the Bahamas. Drawing from ethnographic research in the Exuma Cays and Bath Plantation, the authors explore how these nearshore environments serve not only as sources of food and medicine, but as vital spaces for teaching, healing, and sustaining community identity.
For generations, elders and children have maintained the littoral as a place of independence, dignity, and intergenerational connection. Yet, modern development and marine protected areas risk disrupting these traditional bonds. Stoffle and Stoffle argue that sustainable coastal management must recognize and include local people as co-managers of their heritage seascapes, ensuring that both ecological balance and cultural continuity are preserved at the sea’s edge.
Incised Stones and Southern Paiute Cultural Continuity
By Kathleen Van Vlack and Richard W. Stoffle
Published in the Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology (2021)
This study explores the enduring cultural and spiritual connections of the Southern Paiute people to the Spring Mountains massif—recognized as their place of Creation and the heart of their aboriginal homeland. Drawing on more than 740 ethnographic interviews with Southern Paiute representatives, the authors document how incised stones featuring feather patterns serve as powerful cultural markers of continuity, ceremony, and identity. The research highlights how such artifacts, alongside oral histories and spiritual traditions, inform government-to-government consultation processes and underscore the deep cultural affiliation between Indigenous peoples and their ancestral landscapes.
Publications Authored By Brent Stoffle
Authors: Brent W. Stoffle & Amanda D. Stoltz
Journal: Geology, Earth and Marine Science, Volume 7(6): 1–13
DOI: 10.31038/GEMS.2025761
African Ancestry communities along the Barbados coastline maintain enduring cultural, spiritual, and ecological connections to what researchers term The Sea’s Edge — a dynamic littoral landscape where land and sea meet. Drawing on over two decades of ethnographic research, this study documents how coastal spaces adjacent to Bath Plantation have served as vital cultural zones since the era of enslavement. Today, these areas continue to sustain heritage practices, provide ecological and cultural services, and symbolize identity and resilience. The authors propose a model for understanding and managing these heritage-rich littoral landscapes through community engagement and cooperative stewardship between local residents and national government.
Yellowtail Snapper: Human–Ecological Relationships in the South Florida Fishery (2021)
By Brent Stoffle, NOAA Fisheries/SEFSC/SSRG, and Amanda D. Stoltz, University of California Santa Cruz
Published in the Journal of Ecological Anthropology
In 2018, researchers from NOAA’s Southeast Fisheries Science Center conducted a five-month study with South Florida fishers and local business owners to understand long-term changes in the yellowtail snapper fishery. Participants described how evolving targeting strategies over recent decades have influenced the species’ health and biology—contributing to increased abundance and potentially accelerating growth and reproductive cycles. This research highlights the dynamic, positive relationships between humans and the natural environment, offering valuable insights into sustainable fisheries management and the future resilience of the yellowtail snapper fishery.
In the Wake of Two Storms: An Impact Assessment of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on the St. Croix and St. Thomas Fisheries, USVI
December 2020
This interdisciplinary study examines how Hurricanes Irma and Maria affected the livelihoods, ecosystems, and recovery pathways of small-scale fishers in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawing on interviews, field assessments, and fisheries data, the authors document not only the storms’ environmental and economic impacts but also the resilience and adaptive capacity of local fishing communities.
Authored by Brent Stoffle (NOAA Fisheries), Amanda D. Stoltz (USGS), Jennifer Sweeney Tookes (Georgia Southern University), and Scott Crosson, the report highlights how applied anthropological research can inform disaster response, fisheries management, and coastal recovery planning in the Caribbean.