About Us
Who We Are
The Apsáalooke Energy Justice Project is a collaboration between members of Montana State University,Little Big Horn College,Plenty Doors Development Corporation,University of Wyoming Extension,Center for American Progress, and members of the Apsáalooke tribe.The project is a three-year initiative, funded by grants from theAlfred P. Sloan foundation and First Nations Development Institute, to help address local impacts of the decline in coal production.
The project involves researchabout four related concerns: (1) the institutional, legal, and political history of coal development at Crow; (2) how public services will be affected and related risks to local people; (3) how current (and past) policies affect options for the county and tribal governments to address social risk; and (4) community visions and priorities for energy justice.
Investing in local capacity and honoring the expertise and priorities of Crow community members are central to our approach. The project thrives under the guidance of a Project Advisory Board and invests in an Emerging Leaders Cohort.
Read the project’s ethics statement here.
Project Team
Partners in this proposal have been working together for many years. MSU and Little Big Horn College researchers have collaborated on a series of projects studying health and water quality. Other project partners have been established through research projects focused on the impacts of energy development. In response to a funding opportunity from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Julia Haggerty (MSU), John Doyle (LBHC), Charlene Johnson (Plenty Doors CDC), Mark Haggerty (Ctr for American Progress), and Roger Coupal (Univ. of Wyoming) drafted an initial idea which was submitted for consideration in Feb 2021. In April 2021, the foundation informed us that the project was approved for a full submission. The board of the Sloan Foundation funded the proposal in Dec 2021.Project work began early in 2022 with the first formal convening of our Community Advisory Board .
Project Leadership
- Julia Haggerty (MSU), PI
- John Doyle (LBHC), co-PI
- Charlene Johnson (Plenty Doors CDC), Project Mgr
- Mark Haggerty (Ctr for American Progress), co-I
- Roger Coupal (Univ. of Wyoming), co-I
- Kerri Clement (MSU), Post-Doctoral Scholar
- Raphaelle Real Bird (LBHC), Senior Researcher
- Elizabeth Lee (MSU), Project Assistant
Meet our Project Advisory Board and our 2023 Emerging Leaders Cohort