Partners

Archival and Conservation Organizations

Mr. Leggett presented the BOC's "Campaign to Preserve a Local Legacy" at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives “Fire and Water:  Keeping the Flame Alive” Conference in Cambridge.  He served on a panel:  Teaching from the Source:  Chesapeake Waterways in the Classroom. At this conference Educators from a variety of institutions brought together archival records with Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM)

Leggett shared how the BOC have captured stories about local communities and how they have used archival resources to teach about the cultural and natural diversity of the Chesapeake Bay.  Leggett emphasized the current work underway with the Maryland Archives, Enoch Pratt Free Library and the Johns Hopkins University. He also emphasized the need for Archival community to work with community-based, non-traditional and underserved populations, helping to preserve and conserve this under-documented aspect of our collective heritage.  The message was well received by the audience.

Historical and Cultural Organizations

Multiple historical and cultural institutions have collaborated with the BOC on special programs and projects which highlighted the significant contributions of African Americans.  We have lectured in the southern part of the state at the Sotterley Plantation and the Calvert Marine Museum; on the Eastern Shore we presented at the Chesapeake Environmental Center; The Dorchester County and Talbot County Historical Societies among others.

We have had a special focus group comprised of under-served, marginalized and dispossessed communities within the Baltimore and Washington DC Beltways.  So often minority citizens living and working in these communities are not exposed the Chesapeake Bay and its many tributaries and have a sense of alienation. The BOC utilizes African History and Culture as a segue to the discussion of water-quality and other environmental justice issues.