Project Grant 2415989

This $149,588 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076) supports a partnership development and planning project between four organizations in California's Sierra Nevada region. The goal of the project is to generate ideas for informal STEM learning experiences that focus on socio-ecological issues, such as human-caused climate change, and integrate indigenous knowledge and western environmental science. The partnership, led by the Sierra Streams Institute, will explore strategies to forge an equitable collaboration based on the six Rs of indigenous research principles (relationships, respect, relevance, reciprocity, responsibility, and representation). The primary objectives are to establish a community-based partnership, generate ideas for future informal environmental science learning experiences, document key lessons learned, and create a roadmap for implementing these learning experiences. The project will investigate if the partnership structures and processes facilitate power sharing, equity, and effective collaboration towards the stated goals.