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Reservation communities of the upper Midwest in partnership with the University of Minnesota host this symposium as an important initial step toward the emergence of mutual understanding of the 
significance of wild rice. The three-day symposium, at the Shooting Star Convention Center on the White Earth Reservation, will examine the role that wild rice (manoomin, Zizania palustris) plays within the communities of the Anishinabe people of the upper Midwest and Cree of Canada, and the threats to wild rice in the future. A key focus will be on the potential for genetic engineering of wild rice and the risks posed by such a possibility.
View the Wild Rice Symposium brochure
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Read about the context and potential outcomes of the symposium
Hotel Accommodations Information
Register for the event
For the Anishinaabe (Ojibwa) wild rice (manoomin) is a sacred gift from the creator. It was foretold in their prophecies that they would reach their homeland where food grows upon the water. In this sense, the Anishinaabe exist today as living prophecy fulfilled, and the survival of their people is intimately tied to that of the manoomin itself as found in its natural habitats. Traditional Anishinaabe lifestyles and cultural identity are intimately bound to the manoomin spiritually, physically and economically. It is a sacred gift essential to their cultural survival and appears increasingly threatened by the work of agricultural scientists. Agricultural scientists have been conducting research for the past 40 years to improve wild rice for cultivation. University researchers have contributed to the development of farming of wild rice and are fulfilling their public mission of advancing knowledge and creating economic opportunity for the public at large. In continued pursuit of agricultural research and development, researchers have begun to map the wild rice genome with the goal of developing genetic markers that will allow selection and development of genotypes preferred for cultivation.
Beginning a process of consensus to bridge opposing worldviews. A consensus statement will indicate progress in finding accommodation among contesting interests on the future of wild rice, and explore possibilities for future wild rice research that includes these interests.
Building trust among University scientists, Anishinaabe people and rice growers.
Hotel accommodations can be found at the Shooting Star Casino Hotel.
To reserve a room, please call the Shooting Star Casino Hotel at 1-800-453-7827 and mention, “White Earth Admin.” Rooms blocked for the symposium receive a discount rate of about $50.00 per night. Reserve your room as soon as possible to insure the symposium rate, guests must book prior to August 27 to receive the discount rate.
Shooting Star Casino Hotel
777 Casino Road
P.O. Box 418
Mahnomen, MN 56557-7902
Phone: 800.453.7827
Phone: 218.935.2711
