Water, Land, Life: The Coastal Ecology of the Karankawa People

Members: $10
Non- Members: $18

This talk invites audiences to see how water and land structured the lifeways of the Karankawa people over thousands of years. Through maps, shoreline reconstructions, and ecological models, Bissell explores the coastal landscapes of South Texas as living systems shaped by geology, ecology, and deep human presence. The presentation emphasizes patterns—rivers, bays, barrier islands, and seasonal resources—that reveal a sophisticated mastery of coastal environments. The lecture is grounded in interdisciplinary scholarship, acknowledging both the limits of geology and its value in understanding place. Attendees will come away with a renewed sense of how landscapes remember people, even where history has tried to erase them. Randy Bissell is a Texas Professional Geologist, Texas Master Naturalist, and adjunct professor in the Geology Program at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi.