Moderator:

Kathleen W. Smith, GLIFWC

Panelists:

Donald L. Chosa, Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College Board of Regents and Keweenaw Bay Indian Community

Karlene Chosa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and Keweenaw Bay Indian Community

Todd Haley, Lac du Flambeau Band of Ojibwe

Deb Connell

Session Description:

Moderator:

Madeline L. Nyblade, University of Minnesota

Panelists:

Rob Croll, GLIFWC

Joe Graveen, Lac du Flambeau Tribal Natural Resources Department

Brandon Krumwiede, NOAA Office for Coastal Management

Session Description:

Manoomin/Psiŋ faces many threats from climate change as well as other changes in our environment. Please join us to discuss the impacts of climate change on Manoomin/Psiŋ and how people collaborate to take care of this sacred relative. 

Moderators:

Annette Drewes, Wild Rice Connections

Josh M. Knopik, Minnesota DNR

Panelists:

Darren Vogt, 1854 Treaty Authority

Joshua P. Jones, Red Lake DNR

Mitchell (Sonny) Johnson, Red Lake DNR

Lucas Spaete, Minnesota DNR

Molly Shoberg, Minnesota DNR

Session Description:

Join us for presentations and discussion on what is emerging as we bring new tools to understanding the distribution and abundance of wild rice in Minnesota. Funding through the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) from the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund supports this tribal - state collaboration initiative. Monitoring protocol is based on a system in use by the 1854 Treaty Authority for over twenty years.

Moderator:

Arianna V. Northbird, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Panelists:

Zhaashiigid Nooding, WETCC

Gerald Niizhoogaabo White, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe

Raining White, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe - Divsion of Resource Management

Meghan M. Mitchell, Finland Wild Rice Project

Session Description:

Panelists will share their experiences harvesting and processing of manoomin and share insights on carrying on traditions for future generations. Join us as Arianna Northbird asks questions like: 

• How do you pass on processing knowledge to your family, friends, or community to keep traditions ongoing?

• What are some cultural impacts or changes you’ve witnessed over time in manoomin harvesting practices? (ex. Less people ricing, land use changes, less knowledge about language on the lakes, intergenerational knowledge gaps, etc.) How would you encourage changes within those impacts?

Moderators:

Annette Drewes, Wild Rice Connections

Josh M. Knopik, Minnesota DNR

Panelists:

Jennifer Ballinger, USDA Forest Service

Amy Myrbo, Amiable Consulting and St. Croix Watershed Research Station

Frank Zomer, Bay Mills Indian Community

Session Description:

Join us for presentations and discussion on collaborations around wild rice health, history, and restoration. Wild rice habitat has been impacted by decades of environmental degradation and land use changes across the range of distribution. Understanding where wild rice has been historically, looking at impacts today and determining how to restore this native plant to areas where wild rice no longer exists.

Moderators:

Melissa Thompson, Minnesota DNR

Panelists:

Carly Lapin, Wisconsin DNR

Tom Howes, Fond du Lac Resource Management

Tony Havranek, WSB LLC

Session Description:

Management of aquatic and riparian ecosystems is often necessary to ensure healthy, self-sustaining stands of wild rice.  Each wild rice water is subject to different variables that can influence the annual and long-term presence, abundance, and overall health of the wild rice stand.  Because of this, different management tools and techniques, including the utilization of traditional ecological knowledge and western science applications, may be needed to enhance, restore, or preserve wild rice.  We will hear examples and discuss different tools that have been implemented across the western Great Lakes region to ensure wild rice continues to thrive on the landscape.

Facilitators/Panelists:

Madeline L. Nyblade, University of Minnesota

Sean J Dorr, University of Minnesota

Bazile Minogiizhigaabo Panek, Good Sky Guidance

Cassandra Reed-VanDam, Michigan Technological University

Session Description:

A holistic tool for thinking and acting on Manoomin restoration, education, and research. The morning session will focus on an overview Medicine Wheel tool, and the afternoon will focus on a Medicine Wheel tool for restoration. 

Facilitators/Panelists:

Annette Drewes, Wild Rice Connections

Josh M. Knopik, Minnesota DNR

Session Description:

Join us for an interactive and future looking discussion on monitoring manoomin. With recent funding from the state, collaborative monitoring projects involving The Nature Conservancy, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Tribal Nations were started in the summer of 2022. This project was an initial opportunity to create a statewide (Minnesota) approach to monitoring wild rice. What have we learned and what does a future of monitoring look like? Systems mapping, knowledge sharing and small group discussion will help us envision next steps in this journey together.

Facilitators/Panelists:

Paula Maccabee, WaterLegacy

Ricky DeFoe, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

Nancy Schuldt, Fond du Lac Office of Water Protection

Amy Myrbo, Amiable Consulting and St. Croix Watershed Research Station

Session Description:

In this workshop, you’ll learn how sulfate threatens Minnesota’s water quality, fish, ecosystems, and human health––as well as wild rice—and how tribal authorities, legal advocacy, and community action can protect our natural and cultural resources. Your questions, stories, and feedback about the knowledge and tools that would support your effectiveness in protecting clean water and communities are encouraged.

Anishinaabe Elder Ricky DeFoe will speak about the spiritual power of community. Scientist Amy Myrbo will explain the ways in which sulfate increases algae blooms, mercury in fish, and other harms. Fond du Lac Band Water Projects Coordinator Nancy Schuldt will describe how tribal regulatory authority and sovereignty can protect tribal waters and natural and cultural resources. WaterLegacy Advocacy Director and Counsel Paula Maccabee will describe successes in preventing sulfate pollution through legal advocacy and public action and opportunities where your involvement can protect waters and communities.