I-STEAM Pathways: Environmental Research Internships for Indigenous Students

Understanding more about Indigenous Laws will help me to better understand how I can help communities to work towards sustainability, protect their land and other objectives they have related to the environment, sustainability, and sovereignty.

The talk from the elder was a very enriching experience and one that I did not expect to have given the circumstances of COVID-19. It was really humbling. Ray is also a wealth of knowledge who I enjoyed learning a lot from. Having community members speaking to us directly regarding their experiences working with academia and the government was an important part that should be included every year.

I learned so much during this internship and was fully immersed in research. My supervisor was great and made sure I got to work on multiple projects and made sure I was getting a lot out of the experience.

Knowledge gained from these internships could be used to mobilize indigenous communities and help create sustainable solutions for timber harvesting or conservation of endangered species. The water monitoring opportunity could be especially impactful for indigenous communities, as some of them are very dependent on natural water sources.