Evan Parker is completing his PhD at Tulane University, with a focus on the anthropological archaeology of ancient Mesoamerica. His research examines the intersection of environmental management, religious practice, and inequality in pre-industrial societies, with emphasis on the spatial and environmental dimensions of the production and exchange of wealth among the ancient Maya of Mesoamerica To explore these topics, he has directed excavations at the Middle Preclassic (1000-350 B.C.) ancient Maya village of Paso del Macho, Yucatán, México. His research there explores the confluence of ritual place-making, environmental exploitation, and sport in the emergence and institutionalization of hereditary inequality. These excavations at Paso del Macho reveal that status discrepancies in the village emerged from the manipulation of regimes of value via several cooperative social practices, specifically ritual, cooperative land tenure, construction activity, and the playing of sports. A Young Explorers Grant and an Early Career Grant from the National Geographic Society have supported this research. At UNO, he teaches courses in physical anthropology, archaeology, and cultural anthropology, including Peoples of the World, Human Origins, and Mesoamerican Prehistory.