Duluth campus

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Duluth Campus

Tribal Resource and Environmental Stewardship M.T.R.E.S.

American Indian Studies
College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Link to a list of faculty for this program.
  • Program Type: Master's
  • Requirements for this program are current for Spring 2020
  • Length of program in credits: 36
  • This program does not require summer semesters for timely completion.
  • Degree: Master of Tribal Res and Env Stewardship M T R E S
Along with the program-specific requirements listed below, please read the General Information section of this website for requirements that apply to all major fields.
The master's in tribal resource and environmental stewardship is an applied degree designed to meet the professional and leadership needs of tribal natural resources and environmental programs. Students will develop fundamental knowledge and skills for natural resources careers responsive to community needs and aspirations. Those who currently work or aspire to work in natural resources programs in tribal governance and related contexts will benefit from this program's emphasis on integrated approaches to the stewardship and protection of natural resources based upon Indigenous environmental systems and worldviews. The curriculum is based upon the interrelationship of biological, physical, and cultural systems. Required courses address program operations, sustainability, and integrated ecosystems studies. Elective course and the capstone project provide opportunity for personalized areas of focus. Program delivery is designed to accommodate working professionals and support existing commitments to families and home communities. Partially online course delivery including several face-to-face meetings each semester provides interaction with experts in each area of the curriculum including faculty, staff, special guests, and students.
Program Delivery
  • partially online (between 50% to 80% of instruction is online)
Prerequisites for Admission
The preferred undergraduate GPA for admittance to the program is 3.00.
Other requirements to be completed before admission:
Program is designed to meet the needs of tribal natural resource management. Natural resource professionals have a wide variety of expertise ranging across the sciences, liberal arts, and business and economics. Students entering the program will have Bachelor's degree but no specific disciplinary requirements are necessary.
For an online application or for more information about graduate education admissions, see the General Information section of this website.
Program Requirements
Plan C: Plan C requires 36 major credits and 0 credits outside the major. There is no final exam. A capstone project is required.
Capstone Project: The directed project is the capstone experience of the MTRES program, and is based on the plan previously approved in the seminar course. There will be flexibility to do wide range of projects: internships, service projects, research projects, or other activities. Students will be required to choose a project related to tribal natural resource stewardship that engages the community and involves communication with others.
This program may be completed with a minor.
Use of 4xxx courses toward program requirements is permitted under certain conditions with adviser approval.
Course Requirements (28 cr)
TRES 5100 - Foundations of Indigenous Environmental Systems and Worldviews (Bioregionalism) (3.0 cr)
TRES 5101 - Tribal Natural Resource Program Management 1 (3.0 cr)
TRES 5102 - Tribal Natural Resource Program Management 2 (3.0 cr)
TRES 5201 - Integrated Ecosystems Stewardship 1 (3.0 cr)
TRES 5202 - Integrated Ecosystems Stewardship 2 (3.0 cr)
TRES 5301 - Tribal Natural Resource Economics (3.0 cr)
TRES 5400 - Directed Project Seminar (1.0 cr)
TRES 5994 - Master of Tribal Natural Resource Stewardship Directed Project (3.0 cr)
MTAG 5110 - Principles of Tribal Sovereignty I (3.0 cr)
MTAG 5120 - Principles of Tribal Sovereignty II (3.0 cr)
Elective Coursework
Take at least 2 courses, selected in consultation with the director of graduate studies, for a minimum of 8 credits. One 4-level course, up to 4 credits, may be applied as an elective.
 
More program views..
View college catalog(s):
· College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

View future requirement(s):
· Fall 2023
· Fall 2022
· Fall 2021
· Fall 2020


View checkpoint chart:
· Tribal Resource and Environmental Stewardship M.T.R.E.S.
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TRES 5100 - Foundations of Indigenous Environmental Systems and Worldviews (Bioregionalism)
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This introductory course explores environmental resources, practices, and stewardship from tribal perspectives. A variety of instructional experiences including sharing circles, guest lectures and field study introduce students to related Indigenous knowledge, management systems and stewardship practices. The current needs of tribal communities are examined through studying the idea of Native scholars, traditional teachers and environmental activists. pre-req: admission to MTRES program or instructor consent
TRES 5101 - Tribal Natural Resource Program Management 1
Credits: 3.0 [max 6.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This course is the first in a series of two that will examine topics and issues that a natural resource manager will face in the day-to-day operation of a comprehensive tribal natural resource and environmental management program in Indian County. These courses will provide an overview of a tribal natural resources director's basic functions and responsibilities, the types of programs and projects that trial natural resources department might implement, the agencies and other sources that provide funding and the knowledge and skills that a director will need to operate an overall successful program. These courses will be taught from a practical, on-the-ground perspective to facilitate an understanding of the realities and typical circumstances that a tribal natural resource program director encounters. pre-req: admission to MTRES program or instructor consent
TRES 5102 - Tribal Natural Resource Program Management 2
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Spring
This second course in tribal natural resource management will delve into greater detail on man of the topics covered in the first course and focus on case studies and evaluation of day operation of a comprehensive tribal natural resource and environmental management program in Indian Country. This course will address aspects of intergovernmental relations with other tribes and with federal, state, local and other agencies. pre-req: TRES 5101
TRES 5201 - Integrated Ecosystems Stewardship 1
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Spring
This course is the first in a series of two that will provide the student with the understanding of the biological, chemical, and physical processes necessary to support Native American ways of life in balance with pressures of economic development. The course emphasizes practices that will provide sustainable subsistence foods and medicines for tribal member harvest and to support cultural activities. An integrated natural resource management approach will be used to discuss the reasons why clean air, water, and land are required to support a health environment, which in turn supports a health human population. Specific topics in this course may include geological setting, surface water and groundwater interaction, physical environment of lakes and streams, aquatic food webs, biodiversity, fisheries management, wild rice management, assessment of water quality trends, carrying capacity, environmental regulations and standards. Concepts of mineral stewardship on tribal lands will also be explored. This includes principles of the occurrence, extraction, and processing. pre-req: Admission to MTRES program or instructor consent
TRES 5202 - Integrated Ecosystems Stewardship 2
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This course is the second in a series of two that will provide the student with the understanding of the biological, chemical, and physical processes necessary to support Native American ways of life in balance with pressures of economic development. Specific topics in this course may include wildlife management, range management, land use planning, terrestrial food webs, sustainable agriculture/forestry practices, assessment of air quality, biodiversity, and land use planning. Concept so energy stewardship on tribal lands will be explored. Carbon-based energy resources, with emphasis on coal and petroleum/gas; fundamentals of nuclear energy; technology of extraction, production, refinement, consumption, and byproduct treatment/disposal; importance of carbon-based energy in global industrialization; limits of population growth imposed by energy requirements? principles and associated technologies of renewable energy and energy conversion, with focus on solar, geothermal, tidal, and biofuel energy resources. pre-req: TRES 5201
TRES 5301 - Tribal Natural Resource Economics
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Periodic Spring
Through consideration of multiple perspectives regarding value and exchange, this course pursues micro- and macroeconomic analyses of natural resources under tribal stewardship. Key topics can include modes of valuation, resource markets, sustainability, pollution control, benefit-cost analysis, air and water quality, waste management, and conservation. pre-req: admission to MTRES program or instructor consent
TRES 5400 - Directed Project Seminar
Credits: 1.0 [max 1.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This course provides students an opportunity to plan for their directed project and receive feedback on written and oral communication skills. Students plan and submit the directed project for approval as part of this course. pre-req: TRES 5102, admission to MTRES program or instructor consent
TRES 5994 - Master of Tribal Natural Resource Stewardship Directed Project
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: S-N only
Typically offered: Periodic Fall, Spring & Summer
Tribal Natural Resource Stewardship Directed Project pre-req: MTRES student
MTAG 5110 - Principles of Tribal Sovereignty I
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Fall
This course provides students with a general background of the history, development, structure, and politics associated with indigenous governments. We will examine North American indigenous governance from pre-colonial times to the present, focusing on both the evolution and alteration of these governments as well as the difficult political decisions indigenous peoples faced when confronted by the colonizing forces of European states, the U.S., and individual states, and the modifications developed by indigenous nations in their efforts to retain and exercise their sovereign powers. prereq: MTAG or MTRES student or instructor consent
MTAG 5120 - Principles of Tribal Sovereignty II
Credits: 3.0 [max 3.0]
Grading Basis: A-F or Aud
Typically offered: Every Spring
This course examines the challenges facing tribal governments as they exercise their sovereignty and involves political, economic, and intergovernmental perspectives. Part one examines tribal resource management, analyzing historical use of land, land loss, and contemporary efforts to develop sustainable environmental plans for water, timber, wildlife, and subsurface resources. Part two focuses on the various means tribal governments have devised to exercise sovereignty, such as gaming, small business development, tourism, and joint ventures with partners. Part three concentrates attention at the sub-national level and pays close attention to the political, legal, and economics relationships that have developed between Native nations, state governments, county governments, and municipal entities. prereq: 5110 or instructor consent