3 We are particularly grateful to the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, for our primary Rights Protection and Implementation funding, for full direct and indirect cost funding, for habitat restoration funding, and for invasive species funding. DOI funding in turn allows us to leverage complementary funding from other sources, public and private, including the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. With this support, we have worked hard to become leaders in natural resource management. Our federal, state, and local partners look to us now more than ever precisely because Tribes are proven and respected managers. We are accountable in our work and achieve on-the-ground results that matter today and for future generations. We provide objective scientific and biological studies. We are reliable sources of accurate information, data, and analyses. We are an integral part of law enforcement and public safety networks. We help sustain the Earth’s bounty that in turn sustains the cultural, social and economic foundations of both tribal and neighboring communities. Our focus on youth is helping to develop tomorrow’s leaders, biologists and other professionals. We now have programs that reconnect youth with their elders, language, and culture. We offer internships and other opportunities that assist educational pursuits and career development. These activities help to nurture vibrant communities and tackle the crisis of substance abuse that many youth currently face. With an eye on future generations, we look to the federal government as a valued partner in fulfilling treaty promises. Respectfully Submitted, James E. Zorn Sonny Myers Jane A. TenEyck Executive Administrator Executive Director Executive Director Great Lakes Indian Fish 1854 Treaty Authority Chippewa Ottawa & Wildlife Commission Resource Authority “The mere passage of time has not eroded, and cannot erode, the rights guaranteed by solemn Treaties that both sides pledged on their honor to uphold.” —United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, US v. Michigan, 1979