Overview

Map showing tribal land areas.
Tribal Lands map - PBS Wisconsin Education 

This project brings together natural and social sciences researchers and tribal community partners in the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan to better understand toxic contamination and climate-related changes across the water-rich landscape. The team aims to map the extent of the region’s mercury and organic toxics, e.g., polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) compounds, contamination and fatty acid nutrients in fish in inland lakes, and concurrently, map tribal harvesting practices, valued resources, and climate-related changes across the landscape to categorize lakes and specific practices as low, moderate, or high risk. The project team will also explore particular management and outreach scenarios in order to minimize contamination risk, respond to climate-related consequences, and support human-environment relationships that promote the health and wellbeing of the UP environment and its communities. Finally, the project team’s engagement in bridging Western and Indigenous sciences and expertise will be assessed to identify successes and challenges, and to contribute to the growing scholarship in university and Indigenous community partnerships. 

Research Objectives

The three primary project objectives are listed below. Each objective includes a brief summary of the specific tasks that will be completed by the project team.

To learn more about this research, our partnership, and its importance, please be welcome to review a one-page Project Summary and/or visit the project information and abstract provided by the National Science Foundation.