Clarkson student from Akwesasne secures Changemaker Fellowship

POTSDAM — Abraham Francis is Deer Clan from Akwesasne, a Mohawk Community at the intersection of New York, Ontario, and Quebec, and has been awarded a prestigious Changemaker Fellowship from the NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led organization dedicated to building Indigenous power, in recognition of his leadership potential and community dedication.

The NDN Changemaker Fellowship is designed to invest in the visions, leadership, and development of Indigenous Changemakers. Francis is one of 21 Indigenous Changemakers Fellows for the 2023 Cohort from across the continental United States, Canada, Mexico, Islands of Hawaii, and U.S. Territories.

Francis is a PhD student in the Environmental Science & Engineering program at Clarkson University. He is co-supervised by Professor of Biology Tom Langen and Michael Twiss, an adjunct Professor of Biology at Clarkson and Dean of the Faculty of Science at Algoma University, in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario.

“I particularly wish to thank Dr. Paulette Steeves (Algoma University) and Dr. Lori Bradford (University of Saskatchewan), both Canada Tier II Research Chairs in Healing & Reconciliation, and Social & Cultural Decision Making in Engineering Design, respectively, for their contribution to preparing Abraham Francis for his interview,” Twiss said. “Abraham is well engaged in community involvement in the Great Lakes region, particularly through the lens of his Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) heritage. The Changemaker fellowship will provide him additional funds to allow his ideas and energy to translate into meaningful actions.”

“Abraham Francis has already demonstrated environmental leadership at Akwesasne and at Clarkson,” added Langen. “Recently, he organized and chaired a roundtable of Indigenous scientists on bridging Indigenous and colonialist ways of knowing in environmental science. His research and community engagement with St. Lawrence River shoreline management at Akwesasne is very exciting, and certain to be…