The Office of Research Advancement and Partnerships and the Office of Tribal Relations has announced the recipients for the inaugural Tribal Engagement and Consultation Mini Grants. Four researchers will receive funding to enhance existing partnerships with Tribal communities.
“These mini grants focus on building meaningful, long-lasting relationships with tribal nations,” said Kim Christen, associate vice president for research advancement and partnerships. “These relationships are crucial to collaborative research with Native communities.”
The mini grants provide up to $1,500 and are available to WSU faculty members in any track system-wide. The funding will support travel, listening sessions, stipends for Tribal elders or cultural specialists, participant honoraria, and similar expenses related to engagement with Tribal communities.
“We are excited to support researchers who will work collaboratively with Native American and Tribal communities to conduct research and creative activities that is responsive to the needs of those communities,” said Zoe Higheagle Strong, tribal liaison and vice provost for Native American Relations and Programs. “WSU is committed to meaningful Tribal consultation in support of Tribal sovereignty and the inclusion of their voices in teaching, research, and programming.”
The recipients of the 2024 Tribal Engagement and Consultation Mini Grant winners are:
- Alex Fremier
Professor in the School of the Environment
Fremier will involve Native community members, especially youth, in drone-facilitated salmon counts and habitat assessments of the Kuskowin River Basin in Alaska with the goal of initiating a community-driven monitoring program. - Colin Grier
Professor in Anthropology
Grier will facilitate the recording and transfer of traditional knowledge of keystone places within the Southern Gulf Islands of Coastal British Columbia from Elders of the Hul’q’umi’num peoples, as prioritized by Penelakut First Nation Elders. - Sara Waters
Associate professor in the Department of Human Development
Waters will address substance use and substance use disorders (SUD) among Indigenous communities within Southwest Washington by engaging directly with Indigenous communities and Elders through Talking Circles, during which traditional teachings, ceremonies, and practices to reduce harm may be illuminated and utilized in the current SUD crisis. - Jessica Ullrich
Assistant professor in the Department of Medical Education and Clinical Sciences
Ullrich will utilize her work with the new non-profit Haa Yaitz’u Saiani, a kinship care agency, to develop an intergenerational wellbeing framework, which may be adapted and utilized by other Tribes, by holding focus groups comprised of Elders, birth parents, and cultural knowledge bearers from three Tribal communities.
