SDI Puts on Middle School Night Hike and Lock-in Activity

On February 8, twenty-four Menominee Indian Middle School students participated in an overnight lock-in at the College of Menominee Nation Keshena campus. Students explored astronomy through hands-on night activities and participated in scientific, sustainable, and cultural programming.  “Nothing like this had been done on the CMN campus before, but we knew it could be done,” said Kate Flick, event organizer and SDI Education Coordinator, “It turned out great! Primarily it was to have fun, but it’s always nice when you can do fun events and teach and learn at the same time.”

Paula Fernandez, Cultural Resource Specialist for Menominee Indian School District, guided students in stories and emphasized that the group respect the night-time. Paula shared that Menominee people traditionally do not go out at night; this is the time for the sprits. Students were particularly respectful while they looked at the stars and participated in night time activities.

Students hiked on the CMN walking trail and gathered in a clearing where they identified the seven sisters/seven brothers and told the story of how those stars came to be. The stars were exceptionally visible and it was especially dark –a new moon cycle was about to begin. Students were able to match start color to their temperature and “temperament.” (As Kate described it, “The bright blue-ish/white stars are the ones burning hot and fast like hyperactive youngsters.  Yellow are a little mellower, not as hot and burn a little slower, like middle-aged people—and red stars are low temperature and burn slowly, like grandparents.  It's kind of like fire.“)

Later, around a fire, students and staff told stories. “They are very impressive story tellers!” said Kate. Musician Wade Fernandez provided the group with a performance where he played the flute in the wintry night air. Students told more stories and made s’mores before heading inside. Students slept in the CMN Commons Building where they watched movies, played pool, and got a little sleep.  

Participants woke up to a magical snowy morning where snowflakes hung on tree branches like crystals. Participants went for a morning walk—which turned into outdoor games a snowball fight! The students had a great time and the event was a big hit. Programming supplemented student’s in-class learning where they are currently learning about astronomy, stars, and the universe. SDI sends a huge thank you to all the chaperons who helped during the event.

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.

Intern Experience: By Brennan Waupoose

Brennan Waupoose, College of Menominee Nation student and Sustainable Development Institute Intern, shares his internship experience in the piece below. Brennan's hometown is Keshena, WI and he is a CMN Biological and Physical Sciences major.

SDI Intern: Invasive Species Research Technician

"In the summer of 2012 I spent 6 weeks with Dave Mausel Ph.D., Forest Health Forester with Menominee Tribal Enterprise studying the different invasive plants, insects, and diseases that impact the Menominee forest.

As part of the internship I was to be included in a research project identifying what impacts European earthworms may have on hardwood forests. With a professor and students from UW-Platteville and a student from UW-Madison we spent one week in the Chequamegon National Forest in northwestern Wisconsin collecting our samples and another week at the TREES Lab on the UW-Platteville campus carefully analyzing our data. With our findings we developed a poster presentation to be presented at two national conferences.

·         Society for Advancing Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) National Conference was held in Seattle, WA Oct. 11-14. 1 of 3 awarded in Environmental Sciences category.

·         American Indian Science & Engineering Society (AISES) National Conference in Anchorage, Alaska Oct 29-Nov 4. Received 4^th Place of 88 Undergraduate Research Poster presentations.

This opportunity has changed my career goals. I enrolled in Spring 2012 thinking I would go for a nursing degree. I actually applied for a different internship that I was interested in and was offered this one instead. I was hesitant to accept the position since it was not in my intended field but it has all been worth it. I have met an incredible group of people who have made this project a memory impossible to forget. The most positive outcome of this has been the educational path formed with the help of Evan Larson Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Geography at UW-Platteville who has helped open doors to working in his lab if I go to school at UW-Platteville.

The internship experience also led me to the AISES  conference where I met an admissions director from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Science who joined McKaylee Duquain, Evan Larson and I in our celebratory dinner and offered us unbiased insight on the application process and  how the programs work at Yale. Now, I have a goal in mind: to earn a Masters and possibly Ph.D in Ecology at Yale. Furthermore, more opportunities continue to arise where I can keep presenting results from this project and to develop other projects based off of this one experience.

I highly encourage others to apply for something they may not initially be interested in because in the end it will be beneficial in some way. You will find out if you like it or not, it will look good on any resume, and most importantly you will meet people that may help direct you in the right path."

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!

Guest Speaker Maria Janowiak Presented: "Forests in a Changing Climate"

On Thursday, October 25, 2012 CMN welcomed guest lecturer Maria Janowiak. Janowiak is a Climate Change Adaptation and Carbon Management Scientist at the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science. She spoke to about 25 students, staff and faculty on “Forests in a Changing Climate.”

Janowiak presented data which supports evidence of a warming climate and said that large-scale data shows that the earth is the warmest it has been in over 400,000 years. She noted the pressing importance to reduce greenhouse gas emissions globally.

One of the most noticeable areas climate change is seen is via season change. “The biggest changes we've seen in our region in the last 50-100 years is in winter,” said Janowiak  People have been measuring ice for years and locals are recognizing huge changes. "Not only does it affect the ecology of lakes, but also the community like in winter recreation and ice road access," said Janowiak  Additionally, shorter winters mean conditions will increasingly become more unsuitable for wildlife, causing disease and population decline. 

Summer precipitation is difficult to predict, but data supports rainfall changes. "When you dig down to what it looks like at a seasonal viewpoint, it looks like it’ll be wetter in spring and fall," said Janowiak  There will also be more extreme events, such as storms like 'Superstorm Sandy.' Although they can't be predicted and recorded as quantifiable as temperature change, "what you can do is look at trends over time and intensity and severity," said Janowiak.

Forests are particularly in danger because they cannot adapt as quickly as animals, for example, in the case of migrating. "The pace climate change is going is moving much faster," said Janowiak  "It's uncertain if trees can keep up." Based on weather predictions, scientists and foresters are starting to think about planting vegetation in different regions to acclimate. "In the case of moving trees, the question right now is, how are they going to get there," said Janowiak.

In all cases, scientists are developing different storylines and scenarios and Janowiak says that although some ecosystems are in serious risk, some, thankfully, are not. CMN thanks Maria Janowiak for presenting as a guest lecturer.

Hear From SDI Intern, Laundi Keepseagle

"Híŋhaŋni wašté.  Emačiyapi ye Laundi Keepseagle. Good Morning. My name is Laundi Keepseagle. I am Dakota Sioux from the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota. I have two beautiful daughters, Alexanndrea Germaine and Kyemoni Dakota. The blessing of my children laid out a new path in my life. I decided to attend college shortly after my first daughter was born.

I am currently a Sustainable Development major at the College of Menominee Nation and an active SEEDS member.  I am very inspired by one of my professors, Dr. William VanLopik. During his Intro to Sustainable Development course, I was first introduced to the interconnections of economics, ecology and social equity. I was drawn to social equity issues and hope to continue my education further in this direction. My major goal for the future is to open eyes and hearts to social equity issues happening everyday throughout indigenous tribes across the globe.

The Sustainable Development Institute Sustainability Outreach Event Planner Internship has offered me a running start on my goal. With this opportunity, I have been able to connect with the audience I find most important, children. Thus far, I have taught four classes on sustainability with an emphasis in science and art. I feel that hands-on learning is far more effective than lectures and this internship has given me the chance to explore this thought. I hope to step outside my box and not be afraid to fail. I want to make an impact on the community and spark interest in sustainability."  

"Hello!" from SDI Intern Deidre Wolfe

My name is Deidre Ann Wolfe. I am 29 years old and the proud mother of an amazing and beautiful girl named Nevaeh Boyd and the significant other of Jerred Caldwell. We are also happily awaiting a baby that will be here in early February 2013. I am also a member of the Lac Courte Orellies Ojibwe Nation. I have obtained associates’ degrees in pre-nursing and biological sciences from College of Menominee Nation (CMN) and am currently working on a bachelor’s degree in education. My current goals and intentions for my educational journey are to provide the best life I can for my family and to work for a Native American tribe. My teaching goal is to help inspire Native American children to reach their full potentials and continue on into higher education. I also want to incorporate my love of sciences into my teaching and open up children’s eyes to the possibilities, creativity, exploration and opportunities that science brings.

I am super excited now to have the opportunity working as the Sustainability Outreach Event Planner Intern. I will be working with Laundi Keepseagle who has the same position and our supervisor is Kate Flick. This internship is perfect for me because it gives me the opportunity to reach the community through science, technology, engineering, and math. The audiences we are planning to reach are K – 12 students, CMN and the broader community.

Planning these events is very exciting because there are so many possibilities. My personal goals for this internship are to build my creativity for my future teaching career. I also want to inspire people to be more interested in science and to help people connect with nature. A lot of children do not know all of the possibilities of science careers and the more awareness we put out there, the more educational success our community will have.

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!

The Future of Energy at College of Menominee Nation

On August 23, 2012, Environmental Defense Fund’s Climate Corps Fellow Sarah Jeglum gave a presentation about “The Future of Energy on the CMN Campus.” Twenty four attendees heard Sarah’s recommendations, discussed future projects, shared ideas, and asked questions about her work over the summer of 2012. Jeglum worked with the College of Menominee Nation to identify energy efficiency projects and begin developing a long-term energy management plan for the Keshena campus. The Environmental Defense Fund's Climate Corps program places trained MBA and MPA fellows into companies, cities, and universities to identify and analyze energy efficiency investments that can both reduce costs and energy use in buildings.

SDI Interim Director Dean Fellman introduced Jeglum saying she has served as a strong asset in the Sustainable Development Institute. Jeglum gave an overview of the project and highlighted CMN’s commitment to be a climate-neutral campus. Jeglum cited dedication for carbon neutrality and energy independence in keeping with the more than 12,000-year-old tribal value of sustainability. “We are looking how to move forward with energy goals from today,” said Jegulm, “It’s important we have these far-reaching goals for the future.”

Jeglum stressed the importance of developing a plan and getting a CMN energy team together. “It’s very important to have the structure of the energy plan in place,” noted Jeglum. “I recommend you start with a team and plan and move forward with that.” Jegulm said that CMN has the resources available to do so and encouraged presentation attendees to be proactive about the energy team.

There are many ways in which CMN can cut down its energy use. Jeglum recommended monitoring successes or failures. “Set energy saving goals” said Jeglum. She also stated that although CMN may be a small campus, it is still important to focus on energy. “We can be successful even on a small-scale,” she said.

Jegulm went on to point out specific projects CMN can implement on campus to make the campus more efficient. Projects included installing motion sensors, switching out old light fixtures, and more energy-saving initiatives across all facets of campus energy. “No matter what kind of energy it is, we want to be putting that in an efficient energy machine” she stated.  Jeglum continued to explain that just as you wouldn’t put premium gasoline in an old vehicle, CMN needs to implement specific action items by paying most attention to projects that will produce resourceful results.

College of Menominee Nation is the first Tribal College to host a Climate Corps Fellow. CMN President Verna Fowler noted that this energy action illustrates our commitment to sustainability and commended Jeglum on her work for Climate Corps and CMN.

Both Sarah Jeglum and Dr. Fowler expressed enthusiasm for getting the information out and getting community members and students informed.  “It’s exciting for me to have it be a campus where you can get students involved” said Jeglum. Dr. Fowler recommended spreading the importance and benefits of energy saving out to the community, perhaps in the form of workshops.

College of Menominee Nation thanks Sarah Jeglum and the Climate Corps for the dedication over the summer of 2012. The Sustainable Development Institute plans to use Jeglum’s information to assist in planning future goals and directions.

Water Quality Internship Update by Deidre Wolfe

Benjamin White and I are currently in the initial planning stages of the internship.  The main goal of our internship is to relay information gathered during the “Great Lakes Land Grant Institutions Tribal Water Resource Summit” to the Great Lakes area surrounding tribes.  In addition, we will make sure the summit results are concurrent with water resource needs today.  These are the top ten water resource needs compiled during the water summit:

1.      Water resource management and education through the lens of the local tribal culture

2.      Engage tribal leaders in water issues, education, etc.

3.      Degree program for tribal colleges/colleges serving tribal communities related to tribal environmental management

4.      Youth leadership and involvement

5.      Wild rice protection and management

6.      Interpreting and translation water data for a broader audience data to information

7.      Safe drinking water

8.      Habitat degradation

9.      Climate change affects on water, ecosystems, communities, culture

1.   Increasing funding for tribal water resource work

During the last few weeks, I have been researching and getting familiar with the content and material to be covered.  I have been researching water issues from the “Great Lakes Tribal Volunteer Monitoring Inquiry” including: non-point source pollution, invasive species, safe drinking water, habitat for wildlife and nutritional vegetation, urban and agricultural runoff, chemicals, herbicides and pesticides, well drilling/hydro fracturing for oil and natural gas, bacteria and algae blooms, development along shoreline and agricultural tiling and channelization of streams.  I have also been learning new Native American perspectives on water resource management through watching Winona Laduke presentations, researching Native American environmental groups and reading various tribes culture stories pertaining to water from the Great Lakes area. 

            I currently am in the process of learning how to make presentations through http://prezi.com/.  This software allows for smoother transitions and a more dynamic way to present information.   This software will also allow a research poster to be up-loaded and then you can make a presentation focusing on main points of the poster.  We may use the Prezi software for our presentations and are brainstorming possibilities of making a short video to promote water resource needs awareness.

            In order to establish internship goals and get direction to develop a solid plan we had a conference call with the initiative collaborators of our internship grant: Patrick Robinson and Rebecca Powers.  The insights gained from the call were that we were in the right direction with the research, we have been doing and that we should research ways to introduce perspectives through a Native American cultural lens.  They also gave us a new task of reuniting the grant collaborators to form a Multistate Coordinating Committee with the grant collaborators.  Ben has been working to get this committee together and we are currently waiting on responses to plan a committee conference call.  I am excited and happy with how the internship is going and look forward to everything in the future. 

About SDI Intern, Henry Dodge, In His Own Words

Hi.  My name is Henry Dodge, I am a Menominee Indian.  I would like to tell you a little bit about myself.  I am twenty-seven years old, and I have lived on the reservation all my life. All of my education has been done here on the reservation.  My first day of daycare was here on the reservation.  My first day of Head Start was here on the reservation, and all of my grade schooling has been done here on the reservation.  I am very proud to have all of my schooling done here on my reservation.

                Before I came to college, I worked in the woods as a logger for eight long years.  Working in the woods is not fun.  It is hard work, and if you don’t work you don’t get paid. I liked to get paid, so I work long hours in the woods.  I would work ten to twelve hours days every day.  I had to carry a big saw with me everywhere I went, and in order to run the saw I needed gas and oil.  I had to carry that with me too.  I soon became tired of this work, and I knew I had to find a new job or do something new with my life, so I did.  I knew my reservation had a college, so I might as well start school and see where it would take me. School only did good things for me.  I am now working for the college, and doing what I like to do now, not doing what I have to.       

 I attend the College Of Menominee Nation and am going on my third semester.  I have one semester left, then I will have my first college degree.  I am going to school for sustainable development, but I would like to work with our community more, especially with our youth here on the reservation.  I want to show them what they can do if they try hard and stay out of trouble.  I want them to go to school and get good grades. I have an internship with the sustainable development, which allows me to work with the community, both adults and children. I coordinate summer youth activities such as baseball games, walking clubs, cleaning up the reservation, and more.  I also teach concepts having to do with sustainable development.  Recently, we learned how many trees we breathe in a year, and how much oxygen does a tree give off.  These are just some of the fun educational things we do, and I look forward to doing more with the youth in my position here.

                

POSOH Summer Sustainability Club Wrapping Up

The POSOH summer sustainability club has been busy all summer long doing sustainable related projects. They have harvested sweet grass, worked on an app development for a CMN sustainable-related tour, planted crops in the garden, assisted in POSOH development, and MANY MANY more projects. Come to the CMN Keshena campus Wednesday, August 1, at 4:30 to have some pizza, talk with the group, and see what they've been up to! The friends and family day goes from 4:30-6 and will be located either by the water tower or the volleyball courts. There will be games, prizes, and tye-dying, so be sure to bring a white T or socks to tye-dye!

Harvesting sweet grass

 Gardening with Lloyd

Layered Bed Near CMN Greenhouse - by Lloyd Frieson

Layered Bed

     In this particular area we exercised layering newspapers, weed tops, top soil, compost and manure. We began prepping this area by clearing away all of the weeds and grass. Second, we soaked the ground really good before laying the newspaper on the wet soil. Third we cut the roots from the weeds and began placing the weed tops on the newspaper. Laying out the weed tops evenly will ensure equal soil distribution. Next is a four inch soil and compost mix. Level out the soil to the best of your ability or to your plan and have your starter plants ready for bedding. The best time to transfer plants is in the morning or evening, when the sun is not as hot or at its peak. Doing this will reduce the strain on the plants as you begin to introduce them to their new home. Once you have placed the plants where you want them, make sure to water them to give them a sort of boost.

Plants in the bed consist of Yellow Sweet Corn, Mohawk Beans and 1,000 year old Squash.

In the dark brown area in front of the bed is a row of carrots 

A Day In The Internship - by Lloyd Frieson

Lloyd Frieson

6-15-12 ( Oneida Farm )

It was 6/15/12 on the Oneida farm and was very excited to finally get to visit a place where I had only heard about through hearsay and my uncle who works there. The day was pretty basic, we had to feed and water the chickens, cows and plants. I helped worked on a hay baling machine and chased an escaped baby cow for two hours. The hay machine was bought at a very low price and the staff was wondering why these people sold this piece of equipment so cheap? We found out why when they started the machine and tried to make a bale of hay. The machine started smoking and making a high whining sound. They raised the back of the machine where the hay bale is deployed and we seen why the machine was so cheap. All of the belts that rotate the hay into a bale were crossed. Looking at the machine with this kind of malfunction was sobering but it only looked hard. With the loosening of three bolts we were able to realign the belts and the machine worked perfectly. Fixing this machine took a little time but we gotter done. It was a half hour before lunch and I got to seed corn. This is when the corn that has been dried and is now ready to be processed by removing the kernels and placing them into a bucket to be washed and later packaged. This is Oneida’s main product. Grabbing a corn cob and twisting your hands like you were giving someone an Indian burn was the easiest way of cleaning the cob. When picking a corn cob there were some that had blotches on the kernels, those kernels were discarded along with the cob in a completely different bucket. I forgot to ask what they did with the bucket, if they fed these kernels to chickens or did they completely throw them away. I will have to remember to ask them about the waste when I return later this week.  I had a chance to observe their plant beds and how different they were from each other. One of the areas for example was flat with weed guard and holes for the seeds in the top. I asked, what was the purpose of this technique and does this way solve your problem of erosion because the area was on a slight hill?  One of the workers answered that this was just the layout that was suggested and did not know if it was designed for combating erosion. I explained why I asked that question, because I seen raised beds in between the rows that looked like they had been used the year before and they were pointed in a different direction. Besides the flat crop bed there were a couple of other beds, one was a three-sisters garden which contained about seven mounds and the other was a tobacco garden that had twenty plants. I had the honor of watering these beds for one of my tasks of the day. I asked Jeff Metoxen, if they were planning to use composting as a system of fertilizing the plants? He replied he really didn’t know if they were but if I had some ideas I could share them with him and he would try to make composting part of the farm duties. As we were fixing the hay baling machine I noticed that the corn, Oneida’s money maker, was not doing well at all. I asked if they had a plan just in case no rain comes this way because the corn looked really dry. One of the workers said that they would call the fire department and use the truck to wet the crop down. I am guessing that doing so would cost a great deal of money and that the farm would want to stay away from spending. We returned from lunch and it is time to water the cows again because it was pretty hot that fine day. One of the workers had turned off the live wire to move the cattle and all went well except for a new born calf that was only a day old. This little calf ran between the wires and headed for the highway, at least that’s we thought. We were running around asking people did they see a cow on the road and we got some real funny looks from most of the people. I even flagged down an officer of the Oneida Police Department asked if any calls came in concerning any livestock, he smiled and called it in and still no one saw anything. All of this running around and worrying that this baby calf was going to get hit by a car or even killed made us look even harder. The reason no one seen this calf is because when the calf crossed the street into the bushes, we assumed that it kept going, the calf stopped as soon as it got in the bushes and was lying there watching us scamper around whooping and hollering. It was probably thinking, weirdos. My uncle found the little lady lying in same spot she went in. That was a big relief. We got the calf back to her mother and all was well so we thought. As we approached the chicken coop, there were twenty chickens dead of heat exhaustion. Earlier that day a hawk spotted a chicken that looked wounded and was circling the coop, stirring up the other birds. An organic chicken is about fifteen dollars per bird and all of those chickens were already sold to someone. The chickens looked as if they were trying to get out of the sun because they were all in the shadows of the cooler and along the fence line. I know the boss will not be pleased. This wraps up my report for day one at the Oneida Farm.

About Deidre and the Water Quality Internship

My name is Deidre Ann Wolfe.  I am 29 years old and the proud mother of an amazing and beautiful girl named Nevaeh Boyd and the significant other of Jerred Caldwell. I am also a member of the Lac Courte Orellies Ojibwe Nation.  I have obtained associates’ degrees in pre-nursing and biological sciences from College of Menominee Nation (CMN) and am currently working on a bachelor’s degree in education.  My current goals and intentions for my educational journey are to provide the best life I can for my family and to work for a Native American tribe.  My teaching goal is to help inspire Native American children to reach their full potentials and continue on into higher education.  I also want to incorporate my love of sciences into my teaching and open up children’s eyes to the possibilities, creativity, exploration and opportunities that science brings. 

Continuing on with my education has opened many new doors, challenges, successes and triumphs into my life.  I am honored and appreciative of the fact that my newest educational opportunity was receiving a summer internship through the CMN Sustainable Development Institute.  I was granted the Water Summit intern position.  This position is the second half of an internship that was initially completed by Ben White in 2010.   Ben helped coordinate and plan the Great Lakes Land Grant Tribal Water Resources Summit. The purpose of the summit was to: identify priority tribal water resource issues of the Great Lakes Area Tribal communities, develop collaborations to address the priority issues, and to increase the understanding of potential resources to address the issues and increase the understanding of the cultural importance of water to tribal communities.  In addition to the summit, Ben also conducted a Great Lakes Tribal Water Resources Inquiry in order to, according to the Great Lakes Tribal Water Resources Inquiry Executive Summary, “obtain information that related to water resource issues and determine appropriate paths to develop relationships between the 1862 Land Grant institutions and Tribal Colleges as well as leverage research resources to address water resource issues and improve tribal water quality.”  I now have the privilege of working alongside Ben to complete the second half of the Water Summit internship.  We will be researching and compiling information of water resource related materials pertaining to local Native American communities to promote a better understanding Tribal water quality issues.  We will create a research poster and presentation of our findings combined with information from the Great Lakes Land Grant Tribal Water Resources Summit and the Great Lakes Tribal Resources Inquiry.  We will then travel to the Leech Lake reservation in Minnesota and the Bay Mills Tribal/Community College in Michigan to present our information obtained.

My personal goals for this internship are in the areas of Community involvement, public speaking and learning more about water quality from a Native American Community perspective.  I am looking forward to stepping out of my comfort zone to build up my communication skills and become more confident in my public speaking.  I also want to become more involved with in environmental issues in my community, and this is a remarkable way to introduce myself to the coordination, planning and presentation of issues important to Native communities.  I am also excited to learn everything I can from Ben White and everyone in the Sustainable Development Institute.  I appreciate this opportunity and know it will be an amazing experience.

About Ben and the Water Quality Internship

Pictured: Ben White talking with Arthur "Butch" Blazer, Deputy Under Secretary, USDA

Photo captured 06-06-12

My name is Benjamin White, l am a decedent of both the Menominee and Stockbridge Munsee. I am currently studying nursing, and would like to finish my degrees in biological and physical science, and sustainable development after completing the nursing degree. I enjoy gardening, sailing, skiing, boating, volleyball, and playing with my basset retriever.  Last year I had the privilege to travel to china and study mandarin for a month, this opportunity offered me the chance to observe how other cultures view and utilize their environment as well the challenges they face. This trip also provided firsthand knowledge of geography’s impact on cultures.

My expectations for the internship are to use the information collected at the summit to deliver water resource information in a culturally pertinent format. I expect to research and compile information on the tribal water resource issues identified at the summit, and develop management and educational material through the lens of the local tribal cultures. Native people realize their lives as being connect closely to the world around them.  I anticipate this knowledge will bring exciting challenges and insightful epiphanies.

My goal of the internship is to have a beneficial impact on the knowledge base of youth and adult tribal community members as it pertains to their water resource needs. My goal for the communities is to understand more about how water is impacted by the actions of humans and how that translates to the everyday activities of those who interact with it. A goal for me is to learn more about the best practices in educating other native people in the field of science. It is my view native persons instinctually view the world in a more holistically and thereby will benefit from educational material developed in this format.

I foresee this internship encompassing further research-identified water resource concerns and developing appropriate curricula for tribal communities. My other responsibilities will include working wand sharing information with the other intern Deidre Wolfe. I am excited to work with Deidre to learn more about traditional ecological knowledge and have the chance to share the information I have had the privilege to learn. I am also excited to have the opportunity to visit other tribal communities and gain firsthand knowledge of these geographic areas and attributes of these areas effects on the environment.

About Lloyd and the Gardening Assistant Internship

     Hello, my name is Lloyd Frieson, aka Boobie. I was born in Chicago, IL in 1970 and was raised in Mobile, AL from 1976 until 2004. In 2004 I moved to the Menominee Reservation to get away from the humid heat and mostly this is my mother’s home. I began gardening at the age of twelve years old and have been doing it since. My father’s father was the one who introduced gardening into my life. He would come by every Saturday morning and it was expected that the grand children help in the family garden. I did not want to go work the garden the first year but my father was pretty strict about following the orders of your elders. After awhile the plants began to sprout and bloom and something inside of me lit up spiritually.

     Receiving this internship for the summer is a great opportunity to try different methods of gardening and finding out new information on growing crops. One of my projects I am now working on is maximizing the least amount of area to raise crops. I have made a twenty foot strip by one foot wide and have planted corn, squash, beans and peas. Soon I will introduce some sunflower plants and some herbs into that same area utilizing the total area for foods. My ambitions will be that this area of 20’x1’ will create a wall of vegetation. I am also working on another project that will involve the high school students and clearing out the CMN design by the water tower. I will also be traveling to the Oneida farm and gathering information on how they are sustaining their crop yield. As I understand I am to work while I am there to get some hands on experience which will be great. These are considered valuable teachings and I will treat them as such. The Creator has gifted me this opportunity to be the best I can be. I will also like to talk to some elders on how gardening was back in the earlier times and document those meetings for reference. I would like to thank the SDI board for giving me this opportunity to grow in a field that I am really passionate about.

Student Government Earth Day Cleanup

College of Menominee Nation Student Government organized a highway cleanup on April 21st. Thank you to this great group of student and community leaders for volunteering their time. Their efforts help to keep the highway clean and animals safe from roadside garbage. The group was proud to announce that they collected 23 bags of trash! Job well done! Waewaenen!

(Photographs courtesy of Lucille Martin)

Group shown above: Theresa Martin, Sara Shawanokasic, Breon Cree, Henry Dodge, Tim Waupoose, Lucille Martin, Bryan Waukau, Sadie White, Miranda Perez (photo taken by Schyler Martin, shown in top photo)

Schyler Martin

CMN Career Fair Was A Success

On April 17, College of Menominee Nation hosted a career fair for local high school students. About 300 students had the opportunity to learn about career opportunities and fields of study.

Sustainable Development Institute set up a display and talked to students about jobs related to sustainable development and natural resources. Kate Flick, SDI Education Coordinator, pointed out that nearly every field is connected to sustainable development. Some emerging fields related to climate change are industrial utilities, financial and legal services, transportation, consulting, engineering and construction, marketing, and MORE. If sustainable development isn't your main interest, even understanding climate change and sustainability can add to a resume and open up doors to unique positions.

If you are interested in learning more about careers linked to sustainable development, contact us. sdi@menominee.edu

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.