1854 Treaty Authority News

Firearms season for deer opens Saturday morning at sunrise in the 1854 Ceded Territory. Don't forget - you have the option to register deer online.

Good luck, and be safe out there!!

If you’ve filled your tags and freezer during the hunting season, don’t forget that late fall have some other opportunities for nabbing a few more delectables from the water…

Gill nets are set on deeper inland lakes during the late fall when Lake Whitefish and Cisco (“herring” or “tullibee”) move into shorelines for spawning. Both whitefish species play a key role in lake systems. For example, Cisco feed on zooplankton (microscopic animals that drift around the water), and whitefish presence has a resulting impact on the type and abundance of zooplankton and algae present. Lake Whitefish and Cisco also have narrow habitat requirements; they both require deep lakes where the depths of the lakes remain cold and well oxygenated throughout the year.

See 1854's 2019 Whitefish Netting Season Postings:

Posting #1

Posting #2

Permits for netting whitefish on inland waters are not required by 1854’s code, so we only hear of treaty harvest netted whitefish by word of mouth. Are there any treaty harvesters out there that would be willing to share their stories of whitefish netting?

Read the whitefish netting portion of 1854's code below: 

1854 certified 11 new hunters in Finland, MN on October 17th, 2019. Miigwech to all who participated! See the photos from the training on our Facebook page. Congratulations and happy hunting!

Changes to 1854 Treaty Authority Ceded Territory 2019 Trapping Seasons

There have been changes to established 1854 Treaty Authority 2019 trapping season dates. Shifted dates listed below were approved by the 1854 Treaty Authority Board of Directors on September 26^th, 2019. 

*See the updated 2019 Hunting/Trapping Seasons

1854 Treaty Authority's Dagwaagin (fall) newsletter is AVAILABLE HERE!

It features a few upcoming events in the Duluth-area, like AICHO’s Indigenous Foods Expo and the St. Louis County Historical Society’s Native American Heritage Day. Take some time to learn important Anishinaabemowin for the ricing season, and get signed up for firearm safety/hunter education certification training! Save a copy nearby – this edition has the 2019 hunting/trapping seasons and registration station locations and hours. 

As always, if you have any questions don't hesitate to give us a call!

For Immediate Release

FOSTERING THE NEXT GENERATION TO GANAWENJIGE (TAKE CARE OF THINGS)

Duluth, MN – August 16^th, 2019 - Six Native American students spent the week of July 29^th-August 2^nd, 2019 with the 1854 Treaty Authority at Nenda - Gikendan Noopiming gaye Nibiing (seeking knowledge in the woods and place of water), a natural resource careers camp for tribal youth in the 1854 Ceded Territory, or Minnesota’s Arrowhead region.

The week-long, overnight camp experience was designed to provide up-and-coming native high school aged students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in the field of natural resource management. “We hope to encourage [these youth] to pursue related college majors and careers, and hopefully take our roles in tribal resource management jobs someday”, says 1854 Treaty Authority Cultural Preservation Specialist and Camp Coordinator, Marne Kaeske.

Youth participants spent time in classroom sessions, field trips, and worked alongside professionals in fish and game monitoring survey activities throughout the week. Some of the highlights included electrofishing surveys with 1854 fisheries staff, listening to a migratory songbird’s heart beat with Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center MAPS bird banding team, shooting a dart gun (as part of a wildlife capture demonstration), meeting a K-9 unit dog “Si” and his handler Officer Mike Fairbanks, and a guided hike to the Spirit Tree with Grand Portage council member, John Morrin. 

Camp Nenda was modeled after the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society’s (NAFWS) National Youth Practicums, of which 1854 participated in in 2016 and 2017. “As a chaperone for two past National Youth Practicums, I was in awe of the variety of exploratory applications that the youth participants had, on lakes, streams, wetlands, with fish, wildlife, forests, traditional knowledge… it was really impressive. I knew we would should be holding a similar event for our tribal youth in the Great Lakes Region”, said Kaeske. It has been over ten years since the Great Lakes Region of the NAFWS has hosted a youth practicum. “We have many culturally significant species right here on Ceded Lands, and knowledgeable natural resource professionals working to protect them. By exposing the students to current tribal management projects, they become part of the conversation and therefore the stewards. I am looking forward to hosting bigger and better youth camps using what we learned this year.”

The 1854 Treaty Authority is an inter-tribal natural resource management agency that manages the off-reservation hunting, fishing and gathering rights of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in the lands ceded under the Treaty of 1854. 

For more information, contact Marne Kaeske, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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It’s looking to be a good year for manoomin across the 1854 Ceded Territory. Plan to get out harvesting this year! 

1854 Treaty Authority will be updating the website for the latest conditions from now until the end of the season. See our the Wild Rice Condition Updates page.

(photo, Upper St. Louis River, 8/7/19)

1854 Ceded Territory 2019 Moose Hunt Applications and Information Booklets are now available! Applications are due to by August 16th 2019 to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., NO LATE ACCEPTIONS. Snail mail, e-mail or fill them out in our office.

June 24, 2019

Duluth, Minnesota – Aquatic invasive species across the Great Lakes will get the blitz this summer. Partners at hundreds of water access sites throughout the region will be participating in an AIS Landing Blitz from June 28 to July 7 designed to inform boaters and others of the risks of introducing and spreading aquatic invasive species.

Minnesota is hosting Landing Blitz activities at the following five locations, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., on June 30, 2019.

• Munger Landing, Duluth
• Rices Point Landing, Duluth (*hosted by 1854 Treaty Authority)
• Agate Bay Boat Launch, Two Harbors
• Beaver House, Grand Marais
• HooDoo Point North, Tower

 
Volunteers, along with paid inspectors, will be partnering with state and provincial agencies at boat launches to demonstrate procedures used to prevent the spread of AIS and ways to identify AIS. They will also have information about the protocols for reporting an AIS discovery and local AIS laws and regulations.

While similar events have been hosted by individual states and provinces in previous years, organizers say this is the first time that all of the Great Lakes states and provinces are involved and coordinating efforts to maximize the event’s effect.

The event is an opportunity to work directly with boaters and deliver a coordinated, regional message about the importance of AIS prevention during the busiest boating weekends of the year.

“Working with local communities and volunteers will be key to the success of the event, said Doug Jensen, Minnesota Sea Grant AIS program coordinator.

The community members who are taking time out of their day to participate demonstrates that it takes efforts by everyone to help protect lakes and rivers from the unwanted impacts of invasive species.

For more information on the AIS Landing Blitz, including educational materials, location, and volunteer opportunities, visit www.glc.org/blitz. 

The 2019 Great Lakes AIS Landing Blitz is a multi-agency partnership effort. In Minnesota, Great Lakes Regional AIS Landing Blitz partners include Minnesota Sea Grant, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Watercraft Inspection and Law Enforcement Programs, Wildlife Forever, North St. Louis County Soil and Water Conservation District, Lake Vermilion Association, Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District AIS Program, 1854 Treaty Authority, Cook County AIS Program, and University of Minnesota Extension AIS Detectors Program.

For more information contact: Landing Blitz website or Doug Jensen, 218-726-8712, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Native American Fish & Wildlife Society (NAFWS) is proud to announce the National Summer Youth Practicum (SYP) scheduled for July 29-August 2, 2-19 or August 5-August 9, 2019 at Camp Chaparral on the Yakama Nation reservation in Yakama, Washington. The National Summer Youth Practicum's goal is to welcome incoming 10th, 11th, and 12th grade Native American students who are interested in the preservation, protection, and enhancement of natural resources within their own tribe and community. The program provides an academic experience in a tribal environment. During the program, students will spend their time at Camp Chaparral participating in classroom sessions, field education, recreational activities, field trips, traditional methods, and, most important, interaction with students their own age from various tribes and states. A unique aspect of the program is the use of Native American professionals who are active in the field and, even more important, the invaluable teachings from Tribal Elders. The application is included. Thank you for your interest and please contact us for more information, please email or call: Sasha Hoskie, NAFWS, (303) 931-8871, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

APPLY HERE

Join the National Park Service, Grand Portage National Monument and SeaGrant on a trip to Isle Royale! This overnight camp experience is for youths ages 9-12 with an adult mentor. Educators are also welcome to participate! There are three (3) weekend options to choose from. Register HERE.

Mikwendaagoziwag Ceremonies at Sandy Lake

1854 Treaty Authority's Niibin (summer) newsletter is AVAILABLE HERE!

It features an update on Superior National Forest campground use by band members, a summary on Resource Management’s study on mercury in walleye vs. smallmouth bass, and announces the new tribal climate adaptation menu. Meet our new staff, and see what events you can catch us at this summer!
 

As always, if you have any questions don't hesitate to give us a call!

1854's Resource Management Division is hiring a Climate Specialist. This is a regular, full-time position (1 year, extension dependent upon funding). Application materials (including 1854 Application for Employment) are due June 21st, 2019.

The Anishinaabeg and all indigenous communities have been adapting to the environment and changing climate conditions since their existence. However, there is a sense of importance that requires some accelerated action to strategize a plan forward to conserve the relatives (resources) that we still have. It is especially important with fixed boundaries such as the 1854 Ceded Territory, because once the resources move out of the territory there is the disruption of treaty rights. These disruptions can affect communities spiritually, mentally and physically.

In the Spring of 2017, the Northern Institute for Applied Climate Sciences (NIACS) held an Adapting Forested Watersheds to Climate Change Workshop in Minocqua, WI. A case study for a wild rice restoration project was included as part of the workshop to be used with the NIACS Adaptation Workbook and Adaptation Menu. Anishinaabeg and indigenous workshop participants felt that the current NIACS menu did not adequately recognize or incorporate cultural considerations important for climate adaptation projects. As a result, the workshop participants as well as others who used the current NIACS menu decided to discuss the development of a new menu known as Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad (Caring for Those Who Take Care of Us).

The purpose of Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad was to approach climate adaptation from a cultural perspective. Anishinaabeg believe their truths are still relevant and it is only now that Western facts have begun to verify knowledge that has been the foundations of their existence for millennia. Decisions for use of the relatives were originally communal decisions made with recognition and acknowledgement through respect, reciprocity, and relationships.

Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad is not intended to prescribe a singular indigenous approach for caring of the land and relatives. However, Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad provides suggestions to assist in addressing needs of an Anishinaabe or another indigenous community.  It is encouraged for non-indigenous people or organizations interested in cultural approaches to climate adaptation and management to use Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad. It is with great understanding that the underlying values and principles will guide your efforts and transform the dominant paradigm to one that is cultural, ethical, and effective.

Read Dibaginjigaadeg Anishinaabe Ezhitwaad.