The project has received the sanction of the Blood Tribe Spiritual Advisors and Mookaakin Foundation and was designed to provide a substantial benefit to the Blood Tribe. A major portion of this benefit was assisting in the building of the capacity of tribal members to manage their lands and wildlife. Blood Tribe trainees will be schooled in the scientific theory, techniques and methods used in collection, storage and use of habitat and biological data. This was done in a classroom and field setting with actual field work being carried out by trainees under the supervision of qualified biologists. individuals were able to continue with this work and support the activities of the Blood Tribe in their land and wildlife management activities.
The first component of this phase was the identification of candidates for training with the project. This was done through the Kainai Studies program of Red Crow College. The individuals identified will have some basic training in biology or environmental management at Red Crow College, technical school or university. It is anticipated that the individuals will already be enrolled in such a program and this training will be used to supplement their educational work or that their intention is to enroll in such a program. A minimum of two individuals will be selected for training. The individuals will be Blood Tribe members.
Training will have a classroom and field component. The classroom component will be over a period of two weeks and will be conducted at CEI. CEI will prepare a set of training materials for the course which will include:
Habitat Evaluation Theory
Wildlife and Plant Census Theory
Legal implications of projects (Endangered species, CEAA, etc.)
Wildlife and Plant Census Methods
Radio Telemetry for Monitoring
GPS theory and use
GIS theory and use
Non-invasive Wildlife Monitoring Techniques
Data Management Techniques
Data Analysis Techniques
Data Reporting Techniques
Safety in the Field
The class room sessions will be designed to provide the information and training necessary for the trainees to function efficiently in the field. They will then be equipped to take responsibility for actual data collection, storage and compilation for sections of the project. During the field work the educational component will be continued through systematic review of their performance and upgrading of their skills where necessary through one-on-one instruction by the scientific supervisor of the project.
This phase provided both paid employment for Blood Tribe students and field work experience in the field of environmental management.