How the Weaving of Knowledges Can Result in Revitalization & Healing

Connecting knowledges, cultures, climate change, and fire can result in revitalization and healing. This presentation will provide a brief overview of the importance of and approach taken to weaving together Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Western Science for Climate Change focused work at Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission.  This work guided a similar approach with fire research on cultural lands of the Ojibwe people, with unexpected outcomes.  LOCATION: 5 Illick Hall, SUNY ESF Main Campus

Nisogaabokwe – Melonee Montano, is a mother, grandmother, and an enrolled member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and the Traditional Ecological Knowledge Outreach Specialist for Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) where she helps assess climate change impacts on treaty resources and potential threats to Ojibwe culture and lifeways. She is also a Grad Student at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities in the Natural Resources Science & Management Program under the Forestry Department. Prior to GLIFWC she was Red Cliff’s Environmental Programs Manager where she has also served on various committees including EPA’s Regional Tribal Operations Committee, Alliance for Sustainability, Treaty Natural Resources, the Integrated Resources Management Plan, and is currently serving on the Great Lakes Compact Commission. She holds a B.S. degree in Healthcare Administration with a Native American and Environmental Studies emphasis. Lastly and most importantly, she is a lifelong student of her cultural ways.

This presentation is part of the  Adaptive Peaks Seminar Series and the Women in Scientific and Environmental Professions Speaker Series,  and is presented by teh Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, Department of Environmental Biology, and the ESF Women’s Caucus.

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