1. The Collapse of the Mayan Civilization
Melissa Braunstein, Sera Person, David Carino, Cole Sheppard, Angie Kim

2. The Collapse of the Mayan Civilization
Cole Sheppard
During the Mayan civilization, there is no definite answer, but several theories. The clues to the collapse can be found at copan.
The mayans cut down the jungle canopy.
They were trying to make cities and grow crops.
The civilization extended to parts now are called Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala.
Angie Kim
Everything seems like a mystery, even to this day, of how the Mayan civilization came to an end.
The Mayan civilization may have possibly ended because of a drought, warfare, or both.

3. Drought, Warfare, or Both? ~Angie Kim
The collapse of the Mayan empire still remains as a mystery.
Some scholars believe that the Mayan civilization collapsed because of a drought, warfare, or possibly both during 900 A.D.
Some believe that all possible theories may be a chain of events that caused the collapse of the Mayan empire.
It may be possible that the population increased; eventually the Mayans could no longer continue on with the large population
Then, there might have been warfares among other city-states
Finally, then came the long period of drought, causing the collapse of the Mayan empire.

4. Illustration

5. Possible Theories of the Collapse of the Mayan Civilization
Most Mayanists seem to agree that the collapse was due to a combination of problems, but none seem to agree on what was the dominant cause. Perhaps there was no dominant cause
Early Maya researchers believed that some serious event may have doomed the Mayans. An earthquake, volcanic eruption or sudden epidemic disease could have destroyed cities and killed tens of thousands of people, bringing the Maya civilization crashing down
Many scholars believe that the collapse of the Mayan civilization was due to a long period of drought. The drought theory loses support because it is believed that the Mayans would have moved to better crop production areas
Lastly, a possible revolution by the Mayans lower class or peasant class is possible. It was this class that was responsible for the building and development of monuments and temples throughout the culture. The work would have been body breaking in poor conditions and would destroy many.

6. Interesting facts By Melissa
1. Scientists are using chemical analysis of soil samples to find evidence
2. A drought was caused by the Mayans cutting down too many trees
3. After the tree population went down, the crop population went up
4. The crops didn’t provide as much water to the soil as the trees did
5. Because the Americans today use so many trees, it is possible this can happen to us too
The change from forest to farming changed the climate of the surrounding area. Ø

7. Are the Mayans still alive today?
Are there any Mayans left today? Yes there is. The Mayan empire collapsed, but there are still Mayans alive today.
The Mayan people live in countries like Mexico, Honduras and Central America.
Many Mayans still live like Mayans from thousands of years ago and they have had spanish culture influenced them.

8. Work Cited Cole Sheppard’s works cited:
Angie Kim’s work cited:
"Maya." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 15 Sept
Frater, Jamie. "Top 10 Fascinating Facts About The Mayans - Listverse."Listverse. N.p., 21 Sept Web. 15 Sept
David Carino’s works cited:
"Modern Mayans Struggling to Cope." BBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept