From the Pearl of the Inner Harbor to Noah's Ark: The Transformation of National Aquarium in Baltimore

The poster introduces the main ideas and structure of my paper by displaying photos, timelines, and data charts of the development of the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Visional presentations will emphasize how my research reinterprets the relationship between the ocean and cities in terms of the interaction between humans and nature. Timelines and photos show the development of NAIB in the past 40 years, focusing on how it transformed from the "pearl of the Inner Harbor" to a "Noah's Ark". More explicitly, the timeline records important events of NAIB, including the passage of the building bill, the opening ceremony, the 10th anniversary celebration, animal rights protest, and the establishment of a dolphin sanctuary. This poster also helps the audience to understand the relationship between urban renewal and marine ecological changes--people believed that Baltimore's maritime advantages would be used to boost the city's development in 1970s. The data from local government and the aquarium illustrates that NAIB played an important role in the development of tourism, contributing to the revival of Baltimore. Since the ocean crisis and climate change has become the biggest threat to the sustainable development of Baltimore, people begin to reintroduce the marine ecosystem into the city and readjust the boundary between the city and the ocean. The photos document the aquarium's efforts to protect marine animals and restore ecosystems in Inner Harbor and Chesapeake Bay. NAIB has profoundly changed the relationship between humans and marine animals since tourists have close contact with marine animals during the journey of visiting the aquarium, and their attitude toward them has changed from fear to love. Therefore, the aquarium's captivity has nurtured the power to oppose the captivity policy and safeguard the rights of animals, thus promoting the progress of the aquarium in the field of animal conservation and environmental protection.

Visional presentations will emphasize how my research reinterprets the relationship between the ocean and cities in terms of the interaction between humans and nature. First, examining NAIB's shift within its wedge will help us see how the city works on different levels since the aquarium is a social and cultural institution and an ecosystem in the city. This study demonstrates urban renewal, not only in terms of architecture, socio-economic and political renewal, but also at the ecological level. Second, aquariums are different from other urban ecosystems, such as urban parks and zoos. As an artificial marine ecosystem within the city, it links the city on land with creatures from the sea. Therefore, this study will give the study of urban history a new marine perspective, leading us to consider how the existence of the ocean has affected the rise and fall of a port, and how the change of the city has affected the ocean. Finally, this research encourages us to think about and define "environmental justice" in a new way. Does "environmental justice" encompass only groups of people of different races, genders, and classes?