Expanding the convergence canon: indigenous knowledge systems and place-based convergence research in Lake Superior’s Keweenaw Bay, USA

Authors

• Melissa Baird, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Valoree Gagnon, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Judith Perlinger, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Noel Urban, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Larissa A. Juip, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Kelly Kamm, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow
• Evelyn Ravindran, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Natural Resources Department
• Caren Ackley, GREAT LAKES INDIAN FISH & WILDLIFE COMMISSION
• Cassandra M. Reed-VanDam, Michigan Technological UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-20-2026

Department

Department of Social Sciences; College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science; Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geospatial Engineering; Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology

Abstract

This study presents results from an NSF-funded convergence research project conducted in partnership with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, USA. While convergence research frameworks often emphasize deep integration, we argue that participatory, place-based, and community-led convergence requires maintaining an integrity of difference. Through a systematic literature review, surveys and semi-structured interviews, we examined how team members operationalized convergence research and the Tribal Landscape System (TLS) framework. Across these data sources, convergence emerged as a negotiated practice shaped by distinct roles, institutional responsibilities, and long-term partnership commitments. Our findings demonstrate that ethical engagement, adaptive collaboration, and sustained commitments support knowledge co-production in Indigenous-university partnerships. Incorporating these elements into convergence frameworks strengthens community-led research and improves the design and evaluation of collaborative projects.

Publisher's Statement

© The Author(s) 2026. Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42532-026-00250-7

Publication Title

Socio Ecological Practice Research

Recommended Citation

Baird, M., Gagnon, V., Perlinger, J., Urban, N., Juip, L. A., Kamm, K., Ravindran, E., Ackley, C., & Reed-VanDam, C. M. (2026). Expanding the convergence canon: indigenous knowledge systems and place-based convergence research in Lake Superior’s Keweenaw Bay, USA. Socio Ecological Practice Research. http://doi.org/10.1007/s42532-026-00250-7
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p2/2539

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Version

Publisher's PDF