Non Technical Summary
Oglala Lakota College (OLC), collaborating with the University of Arizona's CyVerse project, CU Boulder's Environmental Data Science Innovation and Inclusion Lab (ESIIL), and American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC), is leading an innovative New Discovery project. This groundbreaking initiative aligns with the goals of the Tribal Climate Resilience Grant Program (TCRGP), centering on the creation and implementation of an Integrated Data Cube (IDC) for climate and agricultural resilience. The IDC, a multi-dimensional representation of datasets designed to provide efficient querying and spatial-temporal analysis, will be piloted at OLC and will focus on treaty boundaries of the Oceti Sakowin of the Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota tribes. Following successful testing and implementation at Oceti Sakowin, the intention is to expand the IDC model to the 13 other Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) within the Upper Missouri River Basin and the Tribal Nations they represent. In addition to the development of the transformative research capabilities the IDC offers for the Oceti Sakowin, this New Discovery project runs in tandem with efforts to strengthen and expand OLC's current educational initiatives in Earth Data Science and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). These parallel efforts will enable OLC students to leverage the research opportunities provided by the IDC more effectively.

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
132	0430	2080	75%
903	7410	2080	25%

Knowledge Area
132 - Weather and Climate; 903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
0430 - Climate; 7410 - General technology;

Field Of Science
2080 - Mathematics and computer sciences;

Goals / Objectives
The proposed effort, the development of an Integrated Data Cube (IDC) for Climate and Agricultural Resilience in Oceti Sakowin Territories, aims to fulfill the following specific objectives:Data Assembly and Integration: To collect and amalgamate existing climate and agricultural data, with a particular emphasis on water availability, hydrology, and soil moisture, from various sources to build the IDC for the Oceti Sakowin region. This involves leveraging resources such as the FAOSTAT/FAO data library and other relevant regional data.Personnel Recruitment and Training: To identify and train suitable individuals from tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) and the local community for two key positions, those who will manage and maintain the IDC. This will foster capacity building and engage the local community in the project.Development of Innovative Tools: To conduct a hackathon that encourages the generation of novel tools and methodologies that enhance the utility of the IDC. This will ensure the platform remains relevant and adaptable to future changes and needs.Collaboration for Ground-Based Climate Information: To collaborate with the North Central Climate Adaptation Science Center (NC CASC) to integrate ground-based climate data into the IDC. This will enhance the quality of data available and the scope of the IDC.Alignment with Regional Needs and Priorities: To work closely with the Sicangu Climate Center to ensure the IDC aligns with regional needs and priorities, enabling the tool to provide actionable data that effectively supports local decision-making and long-term planning. These objectives are central to our long-term goal of enhancing climate resilience and facilitating effective resource management in the Oceti Sakowin territories. Achieving them will provide the tribes within the region with the integrated data necessary for strategic decision-making, thus contributing significantly to their ability to adapt to environmental changes.

Project Methods
Proposed Project Activities: Our strategic plan encompasses a suite of critical initiatives that synergistically contribute to our overarching objectives. Comprehensive data collection and integration will be facilitated through the use of advanced algorithms and machine learning techniques, enabling us to extract and analyze relevant environmental parameters. Strategic recruitment and specialized training of dedicated personnel will ensure the effective management and maintenance of the Integrated Data Cube (IDC). The organization of invigorating hackathons will foster an environment of innovation and problem-solving, with sessions focused on coding marathons and data science tool development. Extensive stakeholder engagement will keep our activities closely aligned with the needs and insights of those directly impacted, involving tribal leaders, policy-makers, agriculturalists, conservationists, educators, and the broader community. Lastly, rigorous internal project evaluation, based on usage of IDC data, tools, and outcomes of grant activities, will be integral to our approach.Hypothesis and Experimental Design: We hypothesize that a localized Integrated Data Cube (IDC), custom-built to meet the unique requirements of the Oceti Sakowin territories, will markedly enhance climate resilience and improve resource management practices. To assess the validity of this hypothesis, we'll deploy a multifaceted measurement and evaluation strategy. We will monitor and track specific indicators, such as changes in crop yields, the efficiency of water usage, the frequency of climate-related crises, the sustainability of water usage, the efficiency of water distribution systems, and stakeholder satisfaction levels. Our mixed-methods experimental design will include both quantitative and qualitative measures; through rigorous statistical analyses, predictive modeling using the IDC, stakeholder interviews, and focus groups, we will gain comprehensive insights into the effectiveness of our strategies. Additionally, our design includes an iterative feedback loop, wherein we will continually evaluate data, collect stakeholder feedback, and perform routine performance reviews.Communication with Tribal Stakeholders and Communities: We believe in maintaining open channels of communication with tribal stakeholders and the wider community. Regular updates will be disseminated through community meetings, newsletters, and webinars. Our team will take great care to present findings in an accessible, easy-to-understand format, with an emphasis on communicating actionable insights that directly benefit the community. In the first year of the project we will pursue all the necessary Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Reservation Review Board (RRB) approvals and relevant Memoranda of Understanding (MOU).Role of Graduate Student or Visiting Scientists: A graduate student, as well as visiting scientists, will play an integral role in our project, contributing expertise in advanced data analysis methodologies, system integration strategies, and stakeholder engagement practices. Inclusion of a graduate student promotes significant effort and input into identification and acquisition of large datasets for construction of the IDC, curation of assimilated data, application of the IDC for agricultural and climatic analyses, and dissemination of project results through publications resulting from a graduate thesis. An Environmental Science M.S. program is under development at Oglala Lakota College which provides an excellent activity through which the graduate student can contribute to grant objectives and help to initiate and invigorate the new M.S. program. A mentoring plan for the graduate student and undergraduate students is attached as a separate document.Knowledge Dissemination and Publication: Our college plans to subscribe to relevant professional journals and make significant contributions to the scientific community through publication of our research findings. Moreover, we will host community-based knowledge sharing sessions to ensure wide accessibility and understanding of our findings.Collaborating Institutions: The Environmental Data Science Innovation and Inclusion Lab (ESIIL) at University of Colorado Boulder, and CyVerse (https://cyverse.org) at the University of Arizona will be indispensable partners on this project. ESIIL and CyVerse will provide critical resources such as data storage on CyVerse Data Store, and data science training via ESIIL as in-kind, without any financial burden on OLC. This collaboration aligns with ESIIL's objective to transition researchers to cloud-based platforms and underscores the value of partnerships in ensuring project success and sustainability.Limitations and Mitigation Plans: We foresee potential challenges such as data inaccessibility, variations in data quality, and resistance to change among stakeholders. To counter these, we will build strong alliances with data providers, implement rigorous data quality checks using error detection and correction algorithms, and maintain ongoing, constructive dialogue with stakeholders to address concerns and facilitate consensus building. We remain committed to responding dynamically to any unforeseen issues, deploying our resources and networks to formulate effective problem-solving strategies.