Great Lakes Research Research Articles

Persisting through friction: growing a community driven knowledge infrastructure

Many memory institutions hold heritage items belonging to Indigenous peoples. There are current efforts to share knowledge about these heritage items with their communities; one way this is done is through digital access. This paper examines The Great Lakes Research Alliance for the Study of Aboriginal Arts and Cultures (GRASAC), a network of researchers, museum professionals, and community members who maintain a digital platform that aggregates museum and archival research on Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Huron-Wendat cultures into a centralized database. The database, known as the GRASAC Knowledge Sharing System (GKS), is at a point of infrastructural growth, moving from a password protected system to one that is open to the public. Rooted in qualitative research from semi-structured interviews with the creators, maintainers, and users of the database, we examine the frictions in this expanding knowledge infrastructure (KI), and how they are eased over time. We find the friction within GRASAC resides in three main categories: collaborative friction, data friction, and our novel contribution: systemic friction.

Future success and ways forward for scientific approaches on the African Great Lakes

The seven African Great Lakes are some of the most critical freshwater, large-lake systems in the world, providing essential services, food, drinking water, and other livelihood support to over 62 million people. Like most freshwater systems around the world, these lakes are strained by anthropogenic stressors, leading to degradation of these biologically important, and human-dependent resources. Despite their importance, these lakes suffer from insufficient research approaches which are short-term, disparate, and unharmonized. Further, a lack of monitoring, data and information exchange, education and training, and gender balance in research, all lead to insufficient knowledge on which to better manage and protect these lakes. While past efforts have resulted in some knowledge accumulation, there is a need for new approaches to understanding and managing these lakes: bottom-up, harmonized, and long-term processes. This paper, and those within this special section of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, highlight new, highly collaborative efforts of freshwater experts representing each riparian country of each African Great Lake through formal advisory groups. These papers are the result of harmonized efforts and collegial agreements as to what issues need to be addressed foremost, written by those on the ground. While each lake has specific, prioritized lists of issues, five overarching issues must be addressed to achieve success on these lakes: providing agency and coordination of African freshwater scientists; increase long-term monitoring; strengthen education and training of existing and future experts; enhance information and data exchange; and ensure stronger gender balance in science and leadership positions.

Routine monitoring of western Lake Erie to track water quality changes associated with cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms

Abstract. The western basin of Lake Erie has a history of recurrent cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (HABs) despite decades of efforts by the United States and Canada to limit phosphorus loading, a major driver of the blooms. In response, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) and the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR) created an annual sampling program to detect, monitor, assess, and predict HABs in western Lake Erie (WLE). Here we describe the data collected from this monitoring program from 2012 to 2021. This dataset includes observations on physicochemical properties, major nutrient fractions, phytoplankton pigments, microcystins, and optical properties for western Lake Erie. This dataset is particularly relevant for creating models, verifying and calibrating remote sensing algorithms, and informing experimental research to further understand the water quality dynamics that influence HABs in this internationally significant body of freshwater. The dataset can be freely accessed from NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) at https://doi.org/10.25921/11da-3x54 (Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, University of Michigan and NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, 2019).

Introduction to the special section: Status and approaches to assess Lake Erie Central Basin hypoxia

Seasonal hypolimnetic hypoxia has occurred in Lake Erie’s central basin since at least the 1950s. The 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement includes a lake ecosystem objective that commits Canada and the United States to minimize the extent of hypoxic zones, with a particular emphasis on Lake Erie. To meet that objective, Canada and the United States adopted a 40% total phosphorus load reduction target for the western and central basins of the lake. To help assess progress in minimizing Lake Erie’s hypoxic zones, the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR) convened a virtual summit in October 2021 to update the state-of-knowledge regarding hypoxia in Lake Erie. This special section summarizes the recommendations for monitoring, assessment, modeling and reporting of hypoxia that resulted from the workshop and features five papers that present new information about hypoxia in Lake Erie. Recognizing that hypoxia occurs in other areas within the Great Lakes basin, a paper investigating seasonal drivers of hypoxia dynamics in Muskegon Lake a drowned river mouth that flows into Lake Michigan, is also featured.

Sea Grant Center for Great Lakes Literacy Shipboard Science Workshop Evaluation

AbstractYouth have an important role in current and future Great Lakes stewardship. Educating youth and empowering them to be Great Lakes stewards requires educators to be knowledgeable and confident, and therefore more likely to engage in teaching Great Lakes literacy activities in their classroom, thus contributing to a Great Lakes‐literate public. The Shipboard Science Workshop (SSW) for educators is a vessel‐based professional learning opportunity aboard the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's research vessel (R/V) Lake Guardian. During the week‐long SSW, educators learn from professional scientists, Sea Grant staff, and each other about Great Lakes research through the lenses of place‐based education (PBE) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The goals of the SSW are to (1) enhance understanding of scientific concepts, processes, or techniques; (2) influence changes in teaching practices, curriculum, or personal behaviors; (3) influence communication and promotion of pro‐environmental behaviors with others; and (4) establish communities of practice, including educators, scientists, and SSW coordinators. Herein, we present the findings of a 10‐month follow‐up survey to evaluate the SSW efficacy from 2016‐2019. Overall, the SSW appears to have achieved its goals. We discuss the implications of these results within the PBE framework for shifting educators’ classroom approaches and empowering youth inquiry and leadership on complex Great Lakes issues.

Experiences and insights on Bridging Knowledge Systems between Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners: Learnings from the Laurentian Great Lakes

Willingness to engage in equitable and ethical relationships with Indigenous partners is becoming more commonplace within public and academic spheres around the globe. However, insufficient training and attention is being given to produce better outcomes for Indigenous partners. This article is a curation of insights and experiences shared during the virtual talking circle held during the “Bridging Knowledge Systems between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities” session at the 2021 Annual Conference of the International Association for Great Lakes Research. Through dialogues and exchanges within this circle, we identified core themes, actionable recommendations, and questions worth considering for those wishing to bridge knowledge systems and engage in co-learning processes involving Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners. We describe herein what appreciating Indigenous knowledge systems, understanding colonial histories and realities, respecting the histories and identities of Indigenous communities, building and valuing good relationships, and committing to mutual benefit look like through the eyes of circle participants and authors of this paper. We see, through the consideration of examples from throughout the Great Lakes and beyond, positive signs of change as well as areas in need of much improvement in how relationships with Indigenous partners are being conceptualised and realised and recognize that much work lies ahead before the complete implementation of the calls and recommendations made by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC), and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) are no longer aspirational, but reality.

Sharing across the space: Introduction to a special issue on bridging Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge systems

This special issue contains 16 articles inspired from a session at the 2021 64th International Association for Great Lakes Research Annual Meeting entitled: “Bridging Knowledge Systems between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.” Four common themes associated with bridging knowledge systems emerged from the collection of articles herein. First, wise practices should form the foundation of ethical, responsive, and productive collaborations. Second, inclusive, and accessible practices can improve our ability to bridge knowledge systems. Third, celebrating and embracing diverse languages and cultures enriches our connection to and understanding of the world around us; languages and cultures are a critical aspect of ontology and expression of knowledge that cut across all articles contained in this issue. Fourth, constructs, such as Etuaptmumk or Two-Eyed Seeing, can help build mutual and equitable relationships drawing on strengths of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge bases. Lessons in applying knowledge-bridging constructs are contained throughout the collection of articles. Indigenous knowledges are a rich source of experiential learning that can no longer be ignored. Creating ethical spaces for co-production of knowledge, co-learning, and joint stewardship is critical to our future and our ability to uphold Indigenous rights today. Throughout this issue, many elements of guidance are offered as ways to begin building the relationships required to bridge knowledge systems in a good way. We intend this collection to further relationship-building and ultimately trust-building among Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples and communities.

Setting an agenda to catalyze research in the social and organizational dimensions of Great Lakes remediation, restoration, and revitalization

The Great Lakes region was once a hub of industry and innovation that provided wealth and identity to the region. Economic upheavals have left the region trying to recreate economies and cleanup degraded environments. There have been multiple, overlapping efforts to change these conditions and create a new narrative for the region through environmental remediation, habitat restoration, and community revitalization on the path towards resilience. The elements that contribute to success are organized differently in different places, and are not always identified or characterized in the environmental literature. Trying to fill this conceptual gap is critical because landscape-scale environmental cleanup has been delivered at the local scale through various partnerships and arrangements. Thus, this special collection of articles in the Journal of Great Lakes Research explores how individuals, organizations, and communities are engaging in the complex process of environmental cleanup and revitalization throughout the region. This collection of articles represents a range of approaches to unpack how people are navigating and contributing to this regenerative process from quantitative studies at the regional scale that characterize global patterns to in-depth qualitative studies that identify and characterize the processes that unfold in specific places to change our environments both ecologically and socially. These articles represent the broad experience unfolding in the region to understand these activities through research and navigate them through practice. This collection will add new dimensions to Great Lakes research by including the individuals, organizations, and agencies as components of the ecosystem.

Wise practices: Indigenous-settler relations in Laurentian Great Lakes fishery governance and water protection

Ongoing tensions between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities working in support of the protection and management of fish and water in North America have necessitated a shift from current structures towards relationships built upon and driven by respect, relevance, reciprocity, and responsibility. Similarly, the cumulative and evolving effects of climate change, industrialization, resource extraction, and displacement of Indigenous Peoples from their traditional and contemporary lands and waters requires purposeful application of decolonizing methods in aquatic systems management and protection, which in turn aids in the re-establishment of agency to Indigenous Peoples. This article endeavors to outline critical differences in ‘best practices’ and ‘wise practices’ in Laurentian Great Lakes fisheries management, water protection, and Indigenous-settler working relations through dialogue on experiences of Indigenous working relationships with colonial governmental bodies. We discuss critical misunderstandings, and the need for creating room for and profoundly respecting Indigenous ways of knowing and being. This work brings together lessons, stories, and knowledge from a panel of Indigenous and allied scholars and community members from the International Association for Great Lakes Research annual conference in May 2021, and subsequently uses a conversation-based methodology to preserve the voices and teachings of panelists. The lessons shared in this work are vital to the future of Laurentian Great Lakes fish and water health.

The Detroit River Story Lab: Community narratives and ecosystems in Great Lakes research

The Detroit River ecosystem has been the focus of extensive and sustained environmental restoration efforts over the past fifty years. These efforts are rightly understood to play an important role in the revitalization of river-adjacent communities. The positive ecological and community impacts of such efforts can potentially be amplified by attending to the narrative infrastructure that inevitably shapes and conditions local residents' responses to them. The Detroit River Story Lab, a new interdisciplinary initiative at the University of Michigan, partners with local organizations to strengthen narrative infrastructure through place-based education, nonprofit journalism, and public heritage projects that seek to reconnect residents with the river and thereby increase support for and participation in environmental restoration activities.

Building a research network to better understand climate governance in the Great Lakes

Climate-driven disturbances threaten the sustainability of coastal communities in the Great Lakes Basin. Because such disturbances are unpredictable, their magnitude, number and intensity are changing, and they occur at varying temporal and spatial scales. Consequently, communities struggle to respond in effective ways. The expected intensification of climate-driven disturbances will require that community capacity and governance structures match the spatial and temporal scales of these disturbances, as the most sustainable social and economic systems will be those that can respond at similar frequencies to key natural system drivers. The Climate Governance Variability in the Great Lakes Research Coordination Network (CGVG-RCN) was recently established to address questions about the relationship between climate-driven disturbances and community response. The objective of this short communication is to introduce the ideas behind the CGVG-RCN, outline its goals, and facilitate engagements and collaboration with social and natural scientists interested in social-ecological systems in the Great Lakes Basin.

Understanding the Role of Community Collaboration Within Indigenous Cultural Heritage Data Migrations

AbstractMany museums and archives globally hold heritage items belonging to Indigenous peoples of North America. There are current efforts to begin decolonizing the practices and legacies of these collections, and one way this is done is through digital access to Indigenous cultural heritage. This poster examines The Great Lakes Research Alliance for the Study of Aboriginal Arts and Cultures (GRASAC) Knowledge Sharing System, a digital platform that aggregates museum and archival records into a centralized database at a point of data migration. Data migrations are not only necessary as a point for technical updates, but also for theoretical changes in the system itself as the needs of its users change. This is the case for the knowledge sharing system as it moves from a password protected system to one that is open to the public. Rooted in qualitative research from semi‐structured interviews with the creators, maintainers, and users of the database, this poster illustrates how GRASAC is working to meet the needs of their user community, and what unique challenges are faced when prioritizing Indigenous knowledge within a database created for western information organization.

Seasonal variation in light penetration and subsurface chlorophyll-α in southern Lake Michigan observed by a glider

The Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research (CIGLR) in collaboration with the Great Lakes Observing System and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (NOAA GLERL) deployed an autonomous underwater glider in southern Lake Michigan several times per year between 2012 and 2019 to collect offshore (>30 m depth) limnological measurements, including temperature, photosynthetically active radiation (beginning during 2015), and chlorophyll-α fluorescence. From these data, we calculated mixed layer depth, several measures of light penetration (diffuse attenuation coefficient, first optical depth, euphotic zone depth), and depth of the subsurface chlorophyll-α maxima. During summer, mean offshore mixed layer depth was typically 10–15 m, Kd for PAR was 0.1–0.17 m−1, first optical depth was 6–9 m, euphotic zone depth was 35–40 m, and depth of subsurface chlorophyll-α maxima was 30–35 m. We also observed substantial spatial and temporal variation in these values across the basin and within and among seasons. Glider-based observations provide a wider horizontal and vertical perspective than other methods (e.g., ship- and satellite-based observations, buoys, and fixed moorings), and are therefore a valuable, complementary tool for Great Lakes limnology. The set of observations reported here provide seasonal and basin-scale information that may help to identify anomalies useful for future glider-assisted investigation into the role of biophysical processes in Great Lakes limnology and ecology.

Joe Leach: Reflecting on a mentor

When I first joined the Great Lakes research community in the summer of 1998, as a very junior member of a study to assess the impacts of Zebra Mussels of planktonic communities in Lake Erie, the n...

Joe Leach: Reflecting on a mentor

When I first joined the Great Lakes research community in the summer of 1998, as a very junior member of a study to assess the impacts of Zebra Mussels of planktonic communities in Lake Erie, the n...

Advancing Africa’s Great Lakes research and academic potential: Answering the call for harmonized, long-term, collaborative networks and partnerships

The African Great Lakes (AGL) have rich fisheries and are renowned “biodiversity hotspots”. Consequently the AGL and the ecosystem services they provide, underpin the welfare and livelihoods of over 50 million people across 10 countries. Despite the recognized importance of the AGL, these vital ecosystems and their livelihood support systems are threatened by numerous anthropogenic stressors at local, regional, and global scales. Past and continued efforts to address critical challenges on these lakes are often short-term, parochial, disparate, and uncoordinated resulting in a lack of comprehensive and comparable scientific data and inadequate resources to influence evidence-based policy. Over the past two decades, several international workshops, conferences and scientific publications have identified the need for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and harmonization of research and management as key elements to enhance conservation efforts in the AGL. In this commentary, we introduce the African Center for Aquatic Research and Education (ACARE), which aims to strengthen research and provide the scientific evidence needed to make informed decisions related to sustainable fisheries and aquatic resource management in the AGL. To do this, ACARE will administer a highly collaborative network of experts with three long-term goals: (1) strengthen global and regional research partnerships; (2) establish transboundary and inter-jurisdictional lake advisory groups; and (3) build capacity of freshwater scientists through experiential education and public engagement.

Commentary on Klokočník, J., Kostelecký, and Bezděk, A. 2019. The putative Saginaw impact structure, Michigan, Lake Huron, in the light of gravity aspects derived from recent EIGEN 6C4 gravity field model. Journal of Great Lakes Research 45:12–20

Commentary on Klokočník, J., Kostelecký, and Bezděk, A. 2019. The putative Saginaw impact structure, Michigan, Lake Huron, in the light of gravity aspects derived from recent EIGEN 6C4 gravity field model. Journal of Great Lakes Research 45:12–20

The 2017 African Great Lakes Conference: Conservation and development in a changing climate

Abstract In May 2017, the African Great Lakes community convened for a region-wide conference in Entebbe, Uganda. The African Great Lakes Conference (AGLC) focused on 6 regionally-important themes, and 300+ attendees presented over 100 talks and posters. The AGLC culminated in the adoption of a set of Conference Resolutions designed to direct the future of African Great Lakes conservation and management. As an Introduction to this Journal of Great Lakes Research special section on African Great Lakes, we report on the impetus for the African Great Lakes Conference as well as discuss three major advances and investments that were a direct result of conference resolutions adopted at the meeting. First, we present the AGLC Resolutions, a set of management issues and solutions developed at the conference. Second, we discuss the African Great Lakes Conference Fund, a conservation fund that has awarded $500,000 USD to launch four new initiatives. Finally, we describe African Great Lakes Inform, a knowledge management platform designed to promote collaboration in the region. The AGLC in general, and these three major conference outcomes specifically, provide a set of basic building blocks to advance partnerships, research and capacity in the African Great Lakes region.

A tale of two Great Lakes conferences: Urging global collaboration on our largest freshwater resources

Abstract Scientific meetings and conferences are a part of the scientific process, and can facilitate collaboration, idea-sharing, and harmonization of research and management. The success of a conference can be measured using many criteria, including consistency and reoccurrence of the meetings, credibility by participation of reputable professionals, and attendance by a diverse community. In the interest of increasing the success of large-lake, freshwater science, policy, and management, this comment focuses on two recent conferences attended by the authors: the 60th annual meeting of the International Association for Great Lakes Research, in Detroit, U.S.A., and the African Great Lakes Conference, in Entebbe, Uganda. By our measures of success, we suggest that to make a larger impact on research, policy, and management of global, large, freshwater lakes that each conference can improve, either through greater diversity of experts from the global freshwater research community, or by consistently reoccurring on a regular basis.

Design Thinking at Great Lakes: The Search for Growth

This document is one of three available case-based simulations used as the basis for a multisession course on design thinking. The course emphasizes deep user understanding, iteration, and a focus on the possibilities as a way to enhance value creation for stakeholders. Please refer to the course teaching guide to view the additional essential pedagogical tools available to the course instructor—including several hours of video content and a set of posters that summarize ethnographic interview findings for each simulation scenario.In this case, the CEO of Great Lakes (GL), a Fortune 200 company and one of the world's largest dairy cooperatives, reflects on the challenges and opportunities the company faces as it considers how to tap into a bigger slice of the lucrative market for snack foods for Millennials, an area GL's research had identified as a promising first target. Students play the role of members of a handpicked innovation team chartered to explore and develop profitable revenue growth opportunities. Excerpt UVA-S-0248 Rev. Apr. 17, 2017 Design Thinking at Great Lakes: The Search for Growth Chris Pollen, the CEO of Great Lakes (GL), a Fortune 200 company and one of the world's largest dairy cooperatives, prepared to convene the first meeting of the team he had handpicked to lead innovation efforts directed at finding profitable revenue growth at GL. In preparation, he reflected on the challenges and the opportunities the company faced as it considered how to tap into a bigger slice of the lucrative market for snack foods, the area GL's research had identified as a promising first target. Founded in 1921, GL was the second-largest member-owned cooperative in the United States. It owned the nation's number-one brand of butter and deli cheeses (utilizing more than 12billion gallons of milk annually) and was a leader in animal nutrition as well as crop protection and seed distribution. GL had built an extensive set of farm-to-market capabilities, including a private fleet of more than 1,700 refrigerated trucks, and had invested heavily in research and development. GL had a tradition of adding value through innovation in both products and packaging. For example, a line of lower-fat deli cheese was introduced to respond to health concerns, as butter was mixed with vegetable oil. In response to consumers' calls for convenience, pre-sliced cheese was added to the line, and butter was sold in smaller sticks. In addition, GL licensed its name to Martin Foods for the distribution of milk, sour cream, yogurt, and other dairy products. Times were good: over the past seven years, sales had doubled and profits had quadrupled. Dairy accounted for as much as 30% of the company's revenue. Per capita butter consumption in the United States had reached its highest point in 40 years. Driving this resurgence were two sweeping trends: shoppers' intensified search for natural ingredients and a spike in interest in gourmet cooking that led more home cooks to experiment with flavors, supporting the success of such new products as GL's Saute Plus Seasonings. Adding to the positive outlook was the popularity of premium-priced butters, such as Irish brand Kerrygold, that were sweeping across both Europe and the United States. . . .