CMN student Cierra Dickenson's Internship Experience with Natural Resources

College of Menominee Nation student Cierra Dickenson gave a presentation about her internship experience working over the summer of 2012. The internship focused on natural resources with a various team of experts as mentors.  She had the opportunity to work in many fields related to sustainability and the health of the forest on the Menominee Indian Reservation. She worked not only with Paul Crocker, MTE, on GIS inventory, but she got a comprehensive look at many different career options. Thanks to some great mentors, Cierra said they made even the challenging aspects enjoyable.

One of the summer projects detailed working on regeneration surveys with Jeff Grignon. "The purpose was to create a healthy stand in the long-run," said Dickenson. They would record tree population and identify tree species. Another project included working as a fishery biologist with the help of Rich Annamitta. "We shocked the fish which was pretty cool," said Dickenson, "the purpose was to get an estimate on fish population."

Cierra also worked as a water resource technician under the guidance of Joe Lyons, Water Resource specialist at the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin - Environmental Services. They would test water quality and get samples for the lab. In another project, Cierra focused on forest health with Dr. Dave Mausel. "We'd ride down the river to record where purple loosestrife was and how bad it was," said Cierra. "Awesome job," noted Mausel, health forester, who was an attendee at the presentation.

Other summer projects included working on timber harvest with Mike Waukau, fire protection with Ron Waukau, and identifying cultural sites with Jeff Grignon. "He showed us how to identify different kinds of sites," said Cierra.

After the presentation, when Cierra was asked what the most challenging part was, Cierra said the amount of help and teamwork she got throughout the internship made it all manageable. In addition, she added, "The internship helped me figure out what I want to do." She plans on continuing her studies in Natural Resources, and finishing her bachelor's degree, perhaps at UW-Stevens Point.

Sustainability Event at Ashwaubenon High School

Sustainability Event Planner Intern Laundi Keepseagle and Sustainability Education Coordinator Kate Flick recently visited Ashwaubenon High School to give a lesson on sustainability to two Forestry and Natural Resources Classes.  High school students worked collaboratively to make and present posters on their vision of sustainability which included concepts like 7 generations, linear vs. holistic thought, interconnection, and the interdisciplinary nature of sustainability. See photos below!

Tsachila Indian Nation of Ecuador Cultural Exchange Visit

On Tuesday, October 23^rd 2012, College of Menominee Nation welcomed guests from the Tsachila Indian Nation of Ecuador. It was their first visit to the United States. College of Menominee Nation, CMN Sustainable Development Institute, and Menominee Tribal legislature representatives were excited and honored to welcome them to Menominee soil. “We are always interested in learning from other Tribes. It helps us understand our responsibility with other Indigenous Peoples,” said Dr. Verna Fowler during a welcome address, “It also helps us understand how lucky we are to live in the United States.”

Tsachila representatives Henrry and Diana Calazacon gave a presentation and shared their story. They were accompanied by UW Marathon County Host and Interpreter Dr. Ronald Lippi.

The Tsachila live on seven small reservations in Ecuador. The people are known for their medicines and diverse knowledge of rain-forest plant use. In addition, Tsachilas are fine musicians as well. “The music helps us harmonize with nature,” said Henrry Calazacon.  And although the Tsachila honor both a sun god and waterfall goddess, Henrry tells that their real god is nature itself.

Today, the Tsachila are faced with many challenges including deforestation and even relocation due to the discovery of oil under Tsachila reservation lands. Urban sprawl from nearby cities, primarily Santo Domingo, threatens land use development and accelerates pollution.

Legally owned Tsachila forests have been and continue to be taken over by loggers, ranchers, and issues are ignored by the Ecuadorian government. “When it came to standing up to firearms, it really wasn't much of a match,” said Henrry, “Traditionally, we have our own resources and food with fishing and harvesting, but now it’s becoming polluted. We have a very healthy diet when we can get our own food, but don’t know how much longer it will last.”

Though there have been lawsuits filed in efforts to keep rivers clean, Henrry notes that the big powerful influences disregard the Tsachila and have the following mentality: ‘They are a small minority, so who cares.’ Recently, developers found petroleum under one of the seven reservations. Henrry noted that although the people were initially happy to have this source of revenue, the Tribe was soon devastated when government officials began to re-claim the land for themselves and tell the Tsachila they must move. This is just one of the unjust issues the Tsachila people are facing today.

Like many First Nations, the Tsachila face the danger of losing cultural knowledge and traditional ways - for example, how to traditionally make Tsachila cotton skirts. As the great grandson of the one of the last great Tsachila chiefs, Henrry more than ever sees the importance of preserving this knowledge. “Many elder leaders are dying off, so we are now realizing the importance of teaching children the Tsachila culture,” said Henrry, “We are reaching out to others to learn and reach out to them.”

The Tsachila value and compliment the natural environment they live in. The people now face losing this valuable relationship with the forest and the medicinal plants within it. “We are very concerned about the loss of our plants,” said Henrry. To preserve the plants and the traditional knowledge behind them, the Tsachila want experts to visit and teach them how to preserve this knowledge and save their rapidly dwindling forests.  “In regard to scientific research, we welcome friends with open arms to share and learn from them as well,” said Henrry.

Today, the Tsachila face these issues by encouraging higher education; in the past, Tsachila people, particularly women, were not encouraged to go to school for fear of cultural loss. Tsafiki, their spoken language, is taught in reservation grade schools, but students must then attend public schools for middle, high school, and college. Diana Calazacon is a modern example of strong Tribal female leadership and is working toward a college degree. “I am studying law and am aspiring to be a lawyer; I want to help my tribe with legal issues,” said Diana.

After their presentation, Henrry and Diana fielded questions and met with Menominee Tribal Leaders Craig Corn, Gary Besaw, and Myrna Warrington. Craig Corn, Menominee Tribal Chairman, explained how Menominee government is run, especially in relation to legislation, election, and Tribal Sovereignty. CMN SDI wishes to thank our visitors for sharing their story with us. 

AASHE Experience

College of Menominee Nation representatives attended the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) conference in Los Angeles, California earlier this week!  CMN President, Dr. Verna Fowler, and two staff from the Sustainable Development Institute (Julie Edler and Kate Flick) attended.

In a candid interview with the two SDI staff, hear what Kate Flick and Julie Edler have to say about the experience:

So, what is AASHE?

It's the biggest campus sustainability conference in North America. It is an excellent way to get a grasp of what exciting initiatives are taking place on campuses around the nation. We attended sessions, gathered some new ideas and contacts, and are ready to head back to Keshena, Wisconsin with a new energy and some great projects to implement. Not to mention, guests at the conference heard about the College of Menominee Nation and learned about Menominee's model of sustainability. It was a great place to meet new people, learn, and share ideas.

What was the best part?
There were so many great aspects, it's hard to narrow it down to one "best part."  I have a bunch of key takeaways from a few different sessions.

Like what? What were the sessions like?
One presentation focused on developing campus sustainability tours. Since SDI is in the process of making one, it provided us with a few ideas. They highlighted how important it is to have communications and marketing in line with the school and reminded us that branding shouldn't be forgotten. They had their tour available to look at and QR codes to scan to see ideas for facts, information, and videos on their campus sustainability efforts.

Some AASHE workshops focused on enrichment workshops for health in relation to sustainability. We learned how important and helpful it is to interweave health and reflection throughout all areas of sustainability whether it be with the community, interns, or even within our own staff.

We've got other great processes to implement about working with students and interns at the Sustainable Development Institute. We learned new ways to train, evaluate, and help our students get the best experience they can. In addition, another session about "Trends in Sustainability and Education" as well as another session on preparing interns for the workforce highlighted new ways SDI can make the intern program better.

That's just a tidbit of the information from the conference. There is much more that we have to bring back. A special workshop on Wednesday highlighted how to build a better "Community of Practice." It taught us the importance of trained and experienced leadership skills and included ideas how to better communicate what's happening in a moment and where direction is headed.

Also, SDI has some workshops in motion and we got some great ideas and training how to better run them. SDI also has an idea for the possibility of doing a film festival, so we got some great contacts and facts about sustainability film festivals and how to go about doing that.

What's the weather like?
Beautiful! We really can't complain!

Julie Edler and Kate Flick will be back on campus on Monday and look forward to it!

Sustainable Agriculture Conference Experience

SDI Gardening Intern Lloyd Friesen and SDI Multimedia Specialist Patrick Waukau attended a Green Bay Sustainable Agriculture Conference August 6-8. This is what Lloyd had to say about the experience:

"The Oneida Nation of Green Bay, WI hosted a conference for sustainable agriculture to many tribes that were present. To name some were the Osage from Oklahoma, Cheyenne from Montana, Ojibiwe from Minnesota, Kul Wicasa from Nebraska and Lakota Sioux from South Dakota. There were also some department heads like Susan Ratcliff from IPM, which is a branch of the EPA. We started with introductions followed by the breakdown of the conference by Jeff Metoxen, Director of the Oneida farm and livestock department. One by one we explained what we were expecting to learn from this conference and as one of the young ladies from Minnesota exclaimed that she did not wish to be "power-pointed to death". That was a really good ice breaker and many of the people agreed. 

The conference was mainly hands-on and the people liked it. We discussed how to start green houses and hoop houses. We also talked about what was the best time of year to start plants and how long can we grow crops. I was asked this question as it was directed towards what we were doing at the college and I explained to the group that I believed we were going to have a season longer than the trusty old farmer’s almanac was implying. I explained how the seasons are changing and that the old way will have to adapt to the new way the world is today with global warming and climate change. Seed harvest was also another popular topic that many had questions and some of the group members had answers that very easy to implement. This was a very good conference and I hope to be at next year’s event."

Tribal Youth Intern Program Fall 2012

Student Conservation Association -- US Fish & Wildlife Service

Tribal Youth Intern Program Fall 2012

SCA and the US Fish and Wildlife Service have 3 new expense paid internships designed to provide students with Native American and Alaskan Native heritage the opportunity to learn more about conservation science, management, and career options through projects at national wildlife refuges.

Available Internships

            Resource Management Intern

            Huron Wetlands Management District, Huron, SD

(August 6 to October 28, 2012) 

Environmental Education Internship

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Brigham City, UT

(August 27 to November 11, 2012)

Resource Management Internship

National Bison Range Wildlife Refuge, Moiese, MT

(September 3 to November 25, 2012)

The Details

• 12 week positions
• At US Fish and Wildlife Service Refuges in South Dakota, Utah and Montana
• Weekly living allowance of $150
• Free housing and reimbursement for roundtrip transportation provided
• Potential AmeriCorps Education Award  ($1,200)
• Must be 18 or older.
• Be available Fall 2012

Application Process

Email your name, address, phone number and College/University to:  SCArecruiting@thesca.org with the subject “USFWS Tribal Intern Program”.  Or you may call me and I will coach you through the online application process.

If you would like more information, please contact Mike Dockry or the Sustainable Development Institute. (715-799-6226)

Andean Guests Visit College of Menominee Nation

On Friday, June 22^nd, a group of Indigenous Leaders visiting from South America met with the College of Menominee Nation and Menominee Tribal Leaders. Through the US Forest Service, College of Menominee Nation welcomed the visitors who were on a nation-wide tour discussing indigenous natural resource management. Their visit with College of Menominee Nation fostered dialogue between South American indigenous groups and the Menominee. 

On Thursday, June 21^st, the group participated in a campfire organized by Kate Flick, SDI Education Coordinator, in conjunction with a community service project group, Young Leaders in Action. The focus of the campfire was on community service and taking care of the earth..Through engaging performances, folk singer Skip Jones played songs about the importance of water and water quality. The Indigenous guests, in their Native languages, thanked the high school group for working toward a better world and generously presented gifts as a thank you.

In Friday morning’s discussion, Dr. Fowler welcomed the visitors to the College of Menominee Nation and John Teller discussed Menominee Culture and history. Dr. Fowler highlighted the importance of having control of your own knowledge and noted: “One of the biggest changes you can do is take control of your education." 

“I think about the values that have helped the Menominee people through the years,” said Dr. Fowler who also commented on the importance of educating students in Menominee respect and hospitality. Following the conversation, a community lunch was served. In the evening, many of those in attendance visited Lakewood Ranger District and Archibald Lake Cultural Heritage Site.

Pictured above is the group at the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest visiting a culturally-significant historical site. Archaeologists have physical evidence to show that this was once a Menominee garden. Questions were raised about who "owns" this land and how relationships evolve between the National Forest Service, the Menominee, and other influencers concerning historical sites such as this one. Overall, the nation-wide study tour served to help indigenous leaders learn about and share information on sustainable forestry management, tribal resource management, tribal and US government relations, and how tribes think about and manage for climate change. 

Above: Dr. Mike Dockry at Archibald Lake

Above: Archibald Lake

Through an agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the US Forest Service is providing technical assistance to Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru through the Initiative for Conservation for the Andean Amazon. Areas of technical assistance proposed in the current work plan include reduced impact logging, watershed management, protected area management, climate change vulnerability assessment, and indigenous exchange. 

Kate Flick Attends Green Schools Conference

Green Schools Conference

After attending the 2^nd Annual Green Schools National Conference from February 27-29, 2012, Kate came back with some great ideas. 

At a breakfast session with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in which the EPA was reaching out to hear schools’ and environmental health communities’ perspectives on environmental health in schools, Kate wanted to learn how to involve students in the process of improving schools’ environmental health. 

“Check out the Council of Educational Facility Planners International (CEFPI).”

The annual competition challenges middle school students to design a sustainable school while also providing standards-based curriculum to use to direct the process.  Every team submits a built project/scale model using recycled materials and a video or PowerPoint presentation and narrative that documents the planning process and rationale for the team’s design.  Through project-based “hands-on” learning, students explore real world problems relevant to their lives and offer solutions, bridging the gap between conceptual theory and real life skills.  They learn how math, science, technology, engineering, history and art are all part of the design process.

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSKPgy2c4d0&feature=player_embedded

Barb Worth of CEFPI says, “Our program/curriculum is geared to middle schools, simply because they are so disengaged in learning and middle school is the time to catch that—project-based learning seems to be a good answer to that and we have seen amazing results. “

Mark and Kate Sorenson, founders of the S.T.A.R. school –standing for Service to All Relations—spoke about their school which focuses on staying  rooted in the tribe’s cultural heritage.  It is located on the SW edge of Navajo Nation in Arizona.  The school was started on the idea that schools themselves are Anglo institutions and there are alternative structures to learning that can integrate more indigenous values into education—from things like what they teach and how they teach it, to something as simple as using circles instead of rows. 

Project-based learning, student choice, small group instruction, sovereignty through service, outdoor education, and cultural rootings make up the base of their academic curriculum which meets both state and cultural standards.  Students from this school have had great success in high school as well as colleges and universities.  One of the most interesting and successful components of the school was using video for place-based education with media literacy.  For example, this video about a kindergarten class visiting a corn field to make Nitsidigo'i', Kneel Down Bread, a traditional Dine' Heritage Food was made completely by 7^th and 8^th graders Kira Butler, Joshua Gregg, and Keanu Jones.  Videos from these middle school classes have been featured in multiple film festivals including Venice Film Festival, AZ Student Film Festival, Cine Las Americas in Austin, TX, Flagstaff Mountain Film Festival, among others. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ig9C41ZJnw&feature=channel

The Third Teacher Plus team was using design thinking (creative problem solving à tangible solution) to engage a different kind of learning ecology.  The thinking process started from the student, asking who is the person that’s learning, how can an environment facilitate them to be a change agent, and how can he or she solve the problem on the ground.  They said that this perspective required a few shifts in how we’re thinking about education, starting with education.

From	→	To
Education		Learning
Sustainability		Regenerative
Object		Ecology
Humanity		Life

They are partnering with the American Indian Institute for Innovation to increase the number of American Indian students in Science Technology Engineering and Math.  They plan to make sure that these subjects remain culturally relevant while also ensuring American Indian communities have young professionals that can help meet their needs.   They are proposing to build the site in the Black Hills. 

Quantitative Explanation: Contribution to Global Warming Broken Down

Have you ever wondered what "pounds of CO2" meant in terms of money or environmental impact? Although it's an old article from 2007, this piece explains and breaks down how you may be contributing to global warming in an easy to understand way. Take a look!

Click Here: "I Wanna Go Green - So Show Me The Math"

Native American Student Responds to a Times Article

Click here to read an article response written by a Native American student writing in response to an article written about a crime that happened in his community. Leave a response if you so wish to, students like this should be commended for their action in getting involved.

USDA's Culture War Article

Click here to read an article about challenges faced between the USDA and American Indian sacred places and rights.

Make Your Own Small Changes

Click here to go to an awesome site where in small ways you can take action against climate change! You can find certain actions you like and pledge to do them. Take a look!!!

Vanishing Languages, Cultures, and Species

Click here to read an interesting article by Seed Magazine titled "Scientists Offer New Insight Into What to Protect of the World's Rapidly Vanishing Languages, Cultures, and Species.

State of the Climate

Here is some interesting information on the State of the Climate National Review. Take a look at some of the climate highlights. There sure are some different weather patterns going on these days...

Hydrolic Fracturing Article

If you've ever wondered what hydrolic fracturing is all about, here is a good article explaining what it is. There is also a good reference list at the end of the page.

Wisconsin Endangers A Sacred Tradition Article

Click here to read an interesting article about the battles concerning the construction of a 4.5-mile-long, open-pit iron-ore mine in the Penokee range, home to the Bad River Watershed.

Ants!

The Department of Bacteriology at UW-Madison has a live ant cam! Check it out at this link here!

They are researching the fungus-growing ants. According to their website, their research description is as follows:

"For approximately 50 million years, fungus-growing ants have been farming fungus for food. Over the evolutionary history of this ancient agricultural association, the ants have diversified into more than 200 species. These ants are divided into five distinct phylogenetic and ecological groups, each with their own favored fungal crops. The evolution of agriculture in ants culminates in the infamous leaf-cutters, which form massive colonies, and have some of the most complex societies of any social insect. This ant-fungus mutualism is also one of the most intricate systems described in nature (Figure 1). As in human agriculture, the ants’ fungal crops are plagued by specialized and coevolved microfungal pathogens. To combat these pathogens, the ants engage in another mutualism with antibiotic-producing actinobacteria. This mutualism, in turn, is exploited by specialized black yeast. Furthermore, just as humans have used bacteria-derived nitrogen to fertilize soils for thousands of years, the ants' gardens also contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria. This ancient association of farmers, crops, pathogens and N-fixers is one of the clearest examples of the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of coevolution and species interdependence.

The Currie Lab is interested in studying the dynamics of this symbiosis, with a particular focus on the interactions that occur between players in the system.  We have a number of different ongoing research areas ranging from symbiont interaction studies (e.g., symbiont switching studies, paired symbiont interaction assays, etc.); exploring microbial diversity in the system using metagenomics; understanding the molecular interactions that occur between symbionts (e.g., antibiotics arms race); comparative genomics of coevolution; host-pathogen dynamics; studying the origins of ancient agriculture; behavioral ecology; and population genetics.  Finally, we are also interested in interactions that occur between microbes associated with other social insects, including those found in honey bees, bark beetles, ambrosia beetles, and wasps."

Check out the website! It is very interesting research!

Fun way to find your ecological footprint.

Go to the web site and click on "footprint." There you will find an awesome interactive survey you can take that shows you your ecological footprint!

http://www.earthday.org/

NOAA report

Here is a link to a report by NOAA highlighting interesting whether climate changes in the north:

http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/reportcard/ArcticReportCard_full_report.pdf