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A $500,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation will allow �������ý��Ƶ faculty and students to explore environmental justice issues in the Fox-Wolf watershed in collaboration with the College of Menominee Nation (CMN).

The three-year grant agreement will facilitate collaborative efforts between �������ý��Ƶ and CMN, including an Indigenous-led residency program, community-engaged courses, faculty exchange and collaboration, and experiential learning opportunities for students, all focused on environmental justice and sustainability issues in a Fox-Wolf watershed that includes the �������ý��Ƶ campus in Appleton and the tribal college 60 miles to the north.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to not only expand our knowledge and teaching about environmental justice issues in our community, but to also work to improve the health of our shared ecology,” said Sigma Colón, assistant professor of environmental studies and ethnic studies at �������ý��Ƶ. “Partnering with the College of Menominee Nation and community to build a mutually beneficial relationship will help us make a lasting impact.”

Colón joined �������ý��Ƶ colleagues Gregory Hitch, assistant professor of environmental studies, and Claire Kervin, assistant professor of English and director of fellowships advising, in leading the development of the project in partnership with Peter Blitstein, �������ý��Ƶ’s provost and dean of faculty, and Jennifer Gauthier, director of the Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) at CMN.

The grant comes as �������ý��Ƶ has embraced water as the theme of its revamped First-Year Studies program, has grown its environmental studies curriculum, and has partnered with Indigenous tribes in celebration of Indigenous People’s Day. 

Conversations with College of Menominee Nation leaders about greater collaboration began six years ago. In 2022, Hitch joined the �������ý��Ƶ faculty as the Jill Beck NEH Postdoctoral Fellow in the Humanities, bringing with him over a decade of experience in partnering with the Menominee Nation. Among other courses, Hitch introduced Indigenous Ecology: Ancestral Knowledges and Science in Action, giving �������ý��Ƶ students an avenue to hands-on research and advocacy with Menominee organizations. In Fall 2024, Hitch was named an assistant professor of environmental studies, a tenure-track position, further bolstering �������ý��Ƶ’s curricular focus on environmental humanities.

The Mellon grant now takes that work to another level.

“We are so excited to have this vital work recognized and supported by the Mellon Foundation,” Hitch said. “This grant signifies just the beginning of a strong and reciprocal partnership between the College of Menominee Nation and �������ý��Ƶ as we collaborate on addressing environmental injustices while promoting innovative teaching and public understanding of our shared watershed.”

Kervin said the grant will fund activities that will cultivate an abiding partnership between �������ý��Ƶ and CMN, centered on the health and interdependence of the Fox and Wolf rivers.

“I am excited about the innovations that the grant will make possible, including collaboration between LU’s environmental studies program and CMN’s Sustainable Development Institute and experiential learning opportunities that allow students to see what humanistic thinking can offer to real communities,” Kervin said.

The work aims to guide new conversations about the history and future of the Fox and Wolf rivers, including �������ý��Ƶ’s place and voice in the watershed. Doing so in partnership with the Menominee improves the likelihood that the work will continue well beyond the three-year window of the grant.

The College of Menominee Nation, chartered by the Menominee people, recently marked its 30-year anniversary. As a 1994 Land Grant institution of higher education, it infuses learning with Indigenous culture and prepares students for leadership, careers, and advanced studies, with a particular emphasis on environmental sustainability.

The authors of the Mellon grant proposal pledged to study and teach about environmental justice issues while also seeking paths to greater sustainability in the region. They point to such environmental issues as settlers clearing forests, uprooting prairies, and damming rivers, all of which produced historical and contemporary environmental injustices that have impacted the Menominee; a proposed sulfide mine that the Menominee are fighting over concerns of its impact on the waterway and Menominee heritage sites; and nonpoint source run-off pollution from roads, farms, and lawns that affect the aquatic food chain and water quality of the Fox-Wolf watershed. 

“As we expand our environmental justice research and curriculum at �������ý��Ƶ, I think it’s important to center issues that impact the Menominee Nation,” Colón said. “Indigenous-centered community building, engagement, and knowledge production will help us grow our Indigenous presence on campus and improve the experiences of Indigenous students, faculty, and staff.”