DEADLINE: IJNR Lake Superior Institute

Lake Superior holds nearly 10 percent of the world’s available surface freshwater, as well as a reputation as the cleanest, clearest and coldest of the Great Lakes.

It is also awash in important stories about how humans use our natural resources. The world’s pivot to renewable energy has revived interest in mining for materials like nickel and copper. Oil and gas pipelines are being expanded to better serve Lake Superior ports. Climate-driven concerns abound — from summertime algal blooms, to warming Great Lakes tributaries, to a loss of reliable winter ice. Additionally, emerging contaminants like PFAS and pharmaceuticals challenge the Clean Water Act mandate to keep our waters “swimmable, drinkable and fishable.”

The Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources announces the expenses-paid Lake Superior Institute for journalists, Jun 10-16, 2023, that will travel along Minnesota’s north shore of Lake Superior and into Canada while exploring how we use, manage and conserve this incomparable freshwater resource and how issues along its shoreline highlight national — and even global — stories of energy production, Indigenous rights, climate change and freshwater fisheries.

Participants of this Institute will hear from scientists, resource managers, Tribal and First Nation leaders, local officials and industry representatives as they develop a better understanding of both the current state of the Great Lakes as well as the history of resource use in the region, and leave better prepared to write about freshwater systems across the country.

Applications due Friday, April 28 (midnight MST)

We will select up to 15 applicants who represent diversity in geography, outlet, race, gender, experience, and journalistic medium.

Priority will be given to journalists of color.

IJNR covers all program expenses (food, lodging, local travel) during programs.

*Please note that Fellows will need passports to participate in this program.