Experts available to discuss how federal funds protect lives and livelihoods in the Great Lakes region

For IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 25, 2025

Contact: Matt Davenport, mattport@umich.edu, University of Michigan News

EXPERTS ADVISORY

ANN ARBOR, MI — Federal investment in Great Lakes research doesn't just protect the waters' ecosystems, it bolsters safety and prosperity for the people who call the region home, according to a new peer-reviewed publication.

Published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, or IAGLR, the report was written by experts from institutions around the Great Lakes region, including the University of Michigan. Authors and IAGLR members are available for interviews about the wide-ranging benefits of this science supported by the public, for the public.

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View the publication

Investing in Great Lakes Science is critical for safety and prosperity in the Journal of Great Lakes Research
(DOI: 10.1016/j.jglr.2025.102614)

Abstract: Scientific research plays a crucial role in supporting the safety and prosperity of tens of millions of people who live, work, and recreate in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Cuts to US federal funding, programs, and agencies threaten this research enterprise. As scientists and collaborators at the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, we make the case for the value of Great Lakes research in terms of human health and safety, economic prosperity, and society’s capacity to confront major challenges today and in the future. The successful track record of scientific research in the Great Lakes shows that it provides return on investment by protecting and restoring the ecosystem, supporting human well-being, and stimulating a thriving economy. Without this continued investment, the future of the Great Lakes and those depending on them is in peril.

Scientific research plays a crucial role in supporting the safety and prosperity of tens of millions of people who live, work, and recreate in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Cuts to US federal funding, programs, and agencies threaten this research enterprise. As scientists and collaborators at the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, we make the case for the value of Great Lakes research in terms of human health and safety, economic prosperity, and society’s capacity to confront major challenges today and in the future. The successful track record of scientific research in the Great Lakes shows that it provides return on investment by protecting and restoring the ecosystem, supporting human well-being, and stimulating a thriving economy. Without this continued investment, the future of the Great Lakes and those depending on them is in peril.

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Available Experts

Gregory Dick is director for the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, or CIGLR, and director of the Great Lakes Center for Freshwaters and Human Health. He is also an Alfred F. Thurnau Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science and the School for Environment and Sustainability. His research focuses on the role of microorganisms in shaping environmental processes, water quality, and biogeochemistry. His lab is currently studying the microbial ecology of harmful cyanobacterial blooms that threaten freshwater ecosystems around the world, using Lake Erie as a natural laboratory.

“Investment in scientific research on the Great Lakes pays off by protecting ecosystems and human well-being and stimulating economic activity. This work is essential for ensuring clean drinking water, enabling safe boating and swimming, promoting healthy fisheries, and supporting industries that rely on the lakes. Protecting the Great Lakes is a bipartisan issue and has long enjoyed bipartisan support; this investment must continue for the benefit of the millions of people who live, work, and play on the lakes.”

Contact: gdick@umich.edu

Mary Ogdahl is the managing director of CIGLR, which consists of a research institute and a regional consortium that is a partnership between universities, non-governmental organizations, businesses and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Odgahl helps support NOAA's mission and strategic goal through coordinating and managing CIGLR's personnel, programmatic activities, proposal development, and research and administrative budgets.

“We are sitting on the largest freshwater resource in the world. In a time when we have clearly observed the devastating impacts of scarcity and degradation in other regions, the U.S. and Canada have an obligation to invest in the long-term health of the Great Lakes. Research and monitoring are essential for ensuring the Great Lakes can continue supporting a strong economy and vibrant communities. Our future depends on understanding the natural systems on which we rely, and that understanding can only be gained through science,” Ogdahl said.

“As with anything we rely upon for our health, safety or financial security, continued investment is both necessary and expected. We don’t expect our bodies or even our cars to be healthy without regular check-ups and maintenance. Why should the Great Lakes—critical to the daily lives of millions of people—be any different?”

Contact: ogdahlm@umich.edu

Mike Shriberg is a professor of practice and engagement at the School for Environment and Sustainability and associate director of CIGLR. He is also engagement director at Michigan Sea Grant and will become director of the U-M Water Center on July 1. He previously served as Great Lakes regional executive director for the National Wildlife Federation and co-chair of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. His research and expertise is on Great Lakes water policy and politics.

“We stand at a critical crossroads in how we manage the Great Lakes,” said Shriberg. “It is rare for the leading scientists and researchers in the region to join together to submit a commentary, but we all recognize the urgency of the moment and the real impacts of the current cutbacks to scientific funding and research. The Great Lakes are what unite the region, and the scientific capacity to understand and manage our shared resource is at existential risk. That’s why we are speaking with one voice about the value of our collective scientific research to the health and well-being of our people, communities and natural resources.”

Contact: mshriber@umich.edu

Patrick Doran is the director of strategy, measures and science for The Nature Conservancy’s five-state Midwest Division in the U.S. His work involves strategic planning, measures, evaluation and learning, and evidence-based science following TNC’s Conservation by Design approach, including a focus on our North American Great Lakes.

“Protecting the Great Lakes, the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world, takes an ‘all in’ approach and this commentary backs that up,” Doran said. “Federal funding is a critical component to supporting research across the Great Lakes, but it’s the collaboration across states, municipalities, tribal entities, conservation organizations and businesses that brings this funding to bear in a way that benefits both people and nature.

“The everyday interactions with the Great Lakes that provide so many values to each and every one of us—swimming, fishing, boating, birdwatching and hiking along the shores of these vast water bodies—are partly the result of the care that our federal agencies, states, municipalities, tribal entities, conservation organizations and businesses invest in these great waters. And these investments are guided by a strong and enduring commitment to scientific research. We simply cannot let that lapse.”

Contact: pdoran@tnc.org

Catherine O’Reilly is the director of the Large Lakes Observatory at University of Minnesota-Duluth. Her research focuses on impacts of climate and land use change on water bodies around the world, particularly on Lake Tanganyika in East Africa, where climate change has had an impact on food security.

“How will future history books describe what is happening right now? I think they will tell a story of how the dismantling of American science led to environmental degradation, economic impoverishment, and a decrease in national security and public safety,” O'Reilly said.

Contact: coreilly@umn.edu

Rebecca Klaper is dean of the School of Freshwater Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her research focuses on emerging contaminants—including pharmaceuticals, personal care products, microplastics and PFAS—in freshwater systems and their potential impacts on organisms.

“Our freshwater systems, including the Great Lakes, are the most important resources we have," Klaper said. "The federal investment in research, cleanup and protection of these resources has led to safer drinking water, protection of fisheries, better predictions of weather, cleaner beaches, economic growth and healthier human populations. Support for these activities should continue to be a national priority.”

Contact: rklaper@uwm.edu

Jérôme Marty is executive director of the International Association for Great Lakes Research and serves as a Canadian member of the Science Advisory Board of the International Joint Commission. Trained as a limnologist, his research has focused on food web alterations in response to various stressors in the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. Over the past 15 years, his work has centered on the interface between science and policy, with a particular emphasis on bridging diverse forms of knowledge to support informed decision making.

“The United States and Canada share joint responsibility for the stewardship of the Great Lakes, a commitment enshrined in binational agreements such as the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement,” Marty said. “The progress made in restoring and protecting the Great Lakes is the result of long-term, coordinated, and sustained investments in science, outreach, and policy. Reductions in these efforts on either side of the border risk undermining these gains and will impact all communities and sectors that depend on a clean and reliable water supply.”

Contact: jmarty@iaglr.org

Donna Kashian is president of the International Association for Great Lakes Research and a professor in the Department of Biology at Wayne State University, where she also directs the Environmental Science Program and the UN Regional Centre of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development in the Detroit-Windsor region. Her research focuses on Great Lakes water quality, examining how disturbances such as invasive species and contaminants affect aquatic communities. She integrates science, policy, and community engagement often through an environmental justice lens, and her work has been incorporated into statewide monitoring efforts and public education programs.

“The Great Lakes are facing unprecedented environmental challenges driven by climate change, emerging contaminants, and invasive species,” Kashian said. “Continued funding is essential not just to monitor these changes but to drive informed action through innovative technologies, including artificial intelligence, effective management strategies, and inclusive policies that protect and restore these ecosystems. Advancing social and political research alongside science is critical to shaping equitable, climate-resilient solutions. Investing in Great Lakes research means investing in actionable knowledge that safeguards the region’s environment, communities, and future.”

Contact: president@iaglr.org