Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal Chairman Michael J. Isham, Jr. and Conservation Stewards Honored by Native American Fish & Wildlife Society Denver, CO – May 31, 2016 – The Native American Fish & Wildlife Society (NAFWS) honored Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal Chairman and Chair of the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC), Michael J. “Mic” Isham, Jr. with its prestigious Chief Sealth at its 34th Annual National Conference banquet in Green Bay, WI.

The Chief Sealth Award is named after the Duwamish leader who is said to have a publicized speech that argued favorably for ecological responsibility and respect of his tribal land rights in the early days. The NAFWS has recognized tribal natural resource managers in Indian Country for their exceptional and impactful work which paves the way for better management of tribal natural resources.

In addition to the Isham’s recognition, Yakama Nation tribal biologist, Brian Saluskin and Gila River Indian Community Tribal Ranger, Mariano Conley were honored for their exemplary and outstanding work and dedication in carrying out their jobs at their tribes.

“This is one of the highest honors and award an elected leader can receive,” said Isham. “No award is an individual award, it is collective award and it is ours together, all of you here. Our sovereignty and treaty rights as tribes are the ultimate most important thing we have and it goes without saying that, if the fish are not clean to eat then of what good is having the treaty right—those two things go together.”

Isham’s work in natural resources began 33 years ago when he volunteered with Northland College’s Sigurd Olsen Environmental Institute and has worked with GLIFWC, Wisconsin Conservation Corps, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the Environmental Protection Agency, and Lac Courte Oreilles Tribe Conservation Director and later as Environmental Division Chief. He was elected Tribal Chairman of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Chippewa in 2013 and served as Vice-President beginning in 1995 and Secretary-Treasurer in 2009. In 2005, he began serving as a commissioner with GLIFWC and served as Vice-Chair with GLIFWC’s Voight Intertribal Task Force since 1998.

The NAFWS is a non-profit organization that recognizes tribal fish and wildlife managers for their exceptional work with their tribes and has been in existence since 1982 as a Native American non-profit organization. The NAFWS’s mission is to assist Native American and Alaska Native Tribes with the conservation, protection, and enhancement of their fish and wildlife resources.

For more information, contact: Karen Lynch, NAFWS, [email protected], 303-466-1725, x. 5.