CNH2-S: Convergence Research: Bridging Knowledge Systems and Expertise for Understanding the Dynamics of a Contaminated Tribal Landscape System

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Restoring ecosystem health is a challenging priority for communities worldwide. This project brings natural and social sciences researchers together with tribal community partners to better understand human-environment relationships in the Upper Peninsula (U.P.) of Michigan. Specifically, this work is focused on toxic contamination and climate-related changes across the water-rich landscape. The team is developing new tools and approaches to map the extent of the region’s contamination in inland lakes, and concurrently, to map tribal harvesting practices, valued resources, and climate-related changes across the landscape. These maps will illustrate U.P. water bodies’ levels of mercury and PCB contamination coupled with tribal harvesting practices and climate observations to categorize lakes as low, moderate or high risk. This research also aims to explore specific management and outreach decisions to minimize contamination risk and support human-environment relationships that promote the health and wellbeing of the U.P. environment and its communities. Results from this project have the potential to be applied in other regions burdened with contamination and climate-related changes. The research team prioritizes diverse and equitable knowledge exchange between Michigan Tech, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College, and other government and higher education institutions, and promotes higher education and career opportunities in STEM for underrepresented students. Compromised ecosystems present profound challenges for communities worldwide. This study examines socio-ecological dynamics within a tribal landscape system (TLS) impacted by anthropogenic toxic contamination and climate-related changes. Interdisciplinary scientists and tribal community partners are focused within the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) homeland where 11 Lake Superior Bands of Ojibwa retain treaty rights, and depend on local resources and landscape knowledge for subsistence and cultural needs. Our long-term goals are to better understand socio-ecological interactions within impaired landscapes, elucidate Ojibwa environmental ethics underpinning these dynamic interactions, and identify and develop appropriate responses to address impairments. Ecological system components include area watersheds, lakes and food webs, and humans, with a focus on contamination and climate-related changes. The social system components include dynamics such as knowledge, expertise, and practices of the KBIC, and of the research team. Research questions and approaches are: 1) How do contamination and climate-related changes impact TLS dynamics? The objective is to map spatial and temporal variation of TLS contamination, social relationships, and impacts. The team is developing statistical models to extrapolate contamination across the TLS by exploring contaminant loadings to lakes and food web biomagnification, and, is examining existing KBIC social survey data sets to elucidate key TLS relationships and impacts. 2) How do ethical considerations affect perceptions of TLS impairments and community decision-making? The team is analyzing fish-contaminant relationships with lake characteristics, evaluating potential stocking and harvesting effects on fish populations, and analyzing various community decision-making scenarios. Ethnographic methods are being used to determine ethical principles and best practices in community decision-making. 3) Does deep integration of knowledges, theories, and methods of the TLS capture complex interactions and dynamics of an impaired CNH system? To evaluate the TLS, the team is collecting system baseline data, and conducting ethnographic research to understand how knowledge of the TLS is co-created.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.