The Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative (GLSI) was launched in 2007 to develop knowledgeable and active stewards of the Great Lakes through hands-on learning in the community. The GLSI’s regional hubs across Michigan help students and their teachers collaborate with local organizations to study and address important environmental issues in their communities. In the process, students learn academic content and practice the skills of problem-solving and citizenship.
The GLSI's Goal
The goal of the GLSI is to develop knowledgeable and active stewards of the Great Lakes. Nurturing the young stewards of Michigan has never been more important than it is today. Noted author Jerry Dennis makes the case for stewardship in his essay, “Some Thoughts on the Next Generation of Stewards" (PDF).
As Dennis notes, the Great Lakes — Erie, Huron, Michigan, Ontario, and Superior — form the largest system of fresh surface water on Earth. Covering more than 94,000 square miles, the Great Lakes and their connecting waterways comprise about 90 percent of our nation’s supply of fresh water. This system greatly affects the quality of life in Michigan and beyond: it is central to our economy, influences our weather, and provides us with many recreational opportunities. Its coastal habitats support a wide variety of plants and animals.
We know that effective stewardship requires both knowledge and a will to act. Although the general public broadly supports environmental education, most people lack knowledge of our region’s natural resources and the important ecological processes upon which we depend.
Young people need experiences that help them learn about and connect to the natural resources that are all around them. The GLSI provides these experiences to classes of students, who collaborate with local organizations to study an environmental issue or topic in their communities.
The GLSI's Key Strategies
Through grants and technical assistance, the GLSI supports each hub’s efforts to integrate three strategies into its work with teachers, students, and community organizations in its service area:
Our Funders & Advisors
The GLSI is funded by the Great Lakes Fishery Trust (GLFT), with additional support from the Wege Foundation. Other funders include the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, the Fremont Area Community Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, and the Frey Foundation, among others.
The GLSI is also served by an Advisory Group and a Funders’ Collaborative. Members of each group lend expertise and resources that advance the GLSI in schools and communities and among key stakeholders and policymakers in Michigan.
Four national consultants work closely with GLSI's staff and participants:
- Greg Smith, Lewis & Clark College
- David Sobel, Center for Place-based Education at Antioch New England Institute
- Doris Terry Williams, Rural School and Community Trust
- Jon Yoder, Salem-Keizer School District and the Northwest Center for Sustainable Resources
Would you like to learn more? Read the Overview of the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative (PDF), or contact us for more information.
About the Great Lakes Fishery Trust
The Great Lakes Fishery Trust is a private foundation established in 1996 to mitigate fishery damages caused by the Ludington Pumped Storage Plant, a hydroelectric facility located on Lake Michigan. Since 1998, the GLFT has awarded more than $50.5 million in grants to 243 projects (as of February 2011) to enhance the Great Lakes fishery. Of that amount, the GLFT has invested more than $2.6 million in the GLSI. For more information about the GLFT, please visit the GLFT website at www.glft.org.