Thinking Spatially Symposium: Mississippi River Futures

In summer 2024, devastating flooding—driven in part by climate change—took an especially damaging toll on communities along the Mississippi River. Much of this flooding took place in the same areas that, less than a year ago, suffered from historically low water levels and drought. Water now consistently appears in public discourse. Join for a series of short presentations, plus a panel conversation, with water experts as we turn to the Mississippi River and ask: How can different approaches to caretaking shape policies, practices, and governance? How are researchers addressing water in their work towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals? Locally, the Mississippi River Resilience and Restoration Initiative seeks to coordinate efforts on conservation and environmental restoration along the entire corridor—what do projects like this mean for community resilience, collaboration, and more?

Featuring Shelley Buck (Owámniyomni Okhódayapi), Bonnie Keeler (University of Minnesota Humphrey School of Public Affairs), and Katey Pelican (University of Minnesota, SPARC/Research and Innovation), moderated by Mark Ritchie, former Secretary of State of Minnesota.

Schedule

9:30 Refreshments
10:00 Introductions & Individual Presentations
11:00 Break
11:15 Panel Discussion with Q&A
12:30 End

Image: Still image from the video 'The Uncompromising Hand' (2017) by Andrea Carlson. Image courtesy of the artist, via Open Rivers.

Thinking Spatially is an annual symposium that explores the spatial context of the most pressing issues of our day using an interdisciplinary approach. Frequent topics include the value of data sources, data visualization, and the role of maps in presenting data. Thinking Spatially is presented by the Institute for Advanced Study, the John R. Borchert Map Library, Mapping Prejudice, University of Minnesota Libraries, and U-Spatial. Presented in partnership with Open Rivers: Rethinking Water, Place, and Community. Cosponsored by the University of Minnesota Water Council.

UMN Conversations at Northrop is a collection of lectures, panel discussions, and other conversations focused on important and timely issues presented in collaboration among numerous University of Minnesota departments and held at Northrop.

About the Presenters

Shelley Buck: president of Owámniyomni Okhódayapi

He Hahawakpa kin ohinniyan oíhduha.

The (River of the Great Falls) will always be free.

Shelley Buck describes the work of Owámniyomni Okhódayapi (OO) to restore Dakota culture and Indigenous landscape at Owámniyomni (St. Anthony Falls). OO's engagement and design processes are centered on traditional Dakota principles—making decisions by consensus, viewing the land and water as living relatives and honoring the power of this sacred place. Buck emphasizes the need to uphold Tribal sovereignty through community development processes and shares her experiences as a Dakota winyan (woman), nonprofit leader, and former Tribal president.

Buck became president of Owámniyomni Okhódayapi in Jan 2023. Buck is an enrolled member of the Prairie Island Indian Community and served 12 years on the Prairie Island Tribal Council, including six years as president. Prior to being elected to Tribal Council, Buck held other positions serving the Tribe, including enrollment clerk and government relations specialist. Buck has a Bachelor of Science in business accounting from Indiana University and a Masters of Art in sports management from Concordia University. She recently finished a second Masters of Jurisprudence in tribal Indian law from the University of Tulsa. Buck currently serves on the boards of the Minnesota Wild Foundation, Great River Passage Conservancy, and Wakan Tipi Awanyankapi in St. Paul. She also held the position of Alternate Regional VP for the National Congress of American Indians.

Bonnie Keeler, associate professor, Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota

Valuing the Mississippi River: Communities, contaminants, and implications for environmental investments

Bonnie Keeler will discuss her current research on the value of the Mississippi River funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Keeler and her team are working in partnership with Mississippi River communities from the Headwaters to the Gulf of Mexico to document threats to water quality, understand values and uses of the River, and identify equitable solutions to manage the Mississippi River.

Keeler is an associate professor at the University of Minnesota Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, where she co-directs the Center for Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy. Keeler’s research investigates the distribution and value of environmental benefits and burdens with a focus on water quality. Dr. Keeler is a member of the Environmental Protection Agency's Board of Scientific Counselors, serving on the subcommittee for social and community science. She is an active consultant on state and regional water planning, collaborating closely with Minnesota's Environmental Quality Board, Department of Health, Pollution Control Agency, Department of Natural Resources, Board of Soil and Water Resources, Metropolitan Council, and Clean Water Council.

Katey Pelican, founding co-director of the Strategic Partnerships and Research Collaborative, University of Minnesota.

Katey Pelican, DVM, Ph.D. was one of the founding co-directors of the Strategic Partnerships and Research Collaborative (SPARC) in the University of Minnesota’s Research and Innovation Office in 2019 before becoming director in 2022. She has led large-scale trans-disciplinary, multisectoral programs at UMN since she arrived in 2007. She was initially hired by the University to start an Ecosystem Health program at the College of Veterinary Medicine, a program that has now grown into a 16-member One Health Division focused on addressing local and global health challenges at the intersection of humans, animals, and the changing environment. She was principal Investigator of the USAID One Health Workforce Project which supported university networks in Africa and Asia to build a global workforce to prevent, detect and respond to infectious disease threats (more than 85 Universities in 16 countries total). Prior to UMN, Dr. Pelican was a wildlife veterinarian and researcher with the Smithsonian Institution and helped initiate an Environmental Change and Species Survival Initiative and lead the Smithsonian-wide Cryobanking initiative.

Moderator: Mark Ritchie, former Secretary of State of Minnesota.

Mark Ritchie served as Minnesota’s Secretary of State from 2007–2015 and recently retired from his position as President of Global Minnesota. He serves as civilian aide to the Secretary of the Army for Minnesota, and serves as Senator Amy Klobuchar’s appointed representative to the National Advisory Board of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Since 2013, he has led Minnesota’s public-private partnership working to bring an International Exposition to Minnesota and is a co-founder and National Secretary of Expo USA. Ritchie has served as a director on the boards of the Minnesota Historical Society, Minnesota’s State Board of Investment, Minnesota Executive Council, Twin Cities Public Television/PBS, Communicating for Agriculture, and the Overseas Vote Foundation. He is a life member of the Association of the U.S. Army, a former senior advisor to the Minnesota National Guard, a life member of the University of Minnesota Alumni Association, and the Army War College Foundation. 

Related Links

• U of M Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Minnesota
• Mississippi River Restoration and Resilience Initiative (MRRRI)
• Owámniyomni Okhódayapi
• Open Rivers: Rethinking Water, Place, and Community
• Open Rivers: Call for Proposals: Rights, Conflict, Water
• Strategic Partnerships and Research Collaborative (SPARC) at the University of Minnesota
• IAS Institute for Advanced Study