Bringing Keweenaw insights to an international stage, GLRC Geosciences Research Scientist Erika Vye (GLRC/GMES) presented at the Geological Society of America’s 2026 Pardee Keynote Symposia on October 13 in Denver, Colorado.
The Pardee Keynote Symposia represent the pinnacle of interdisciplinary discussion and forward-thinking research at the GSA Connects annual meeting. Named in honor of distinguished GSA Fellow and benefactor Joseph Thomas Pardee, these invited sessions bring together global leaders to address critical, big-picture challenges across the geosciences.
As part of the global “Geoheritage in a World of Resource Extraction” keynote symposium, Vye delivered a presentation titled “Deep Time, Shared Stories: Exploring Relationships with Mining in the Keweenaw Peninsula.”
As global demand for critical minerals and energy transition materials accelerates, balancing resource extraction with the conservation of geologically and culturally significant sites has become paramount. This GSA–ProGEO Symposium explored the complex interplay of geoheritage and humanity’s dependence on past, present, and future resource extraction.
Vye also co-chaired a technical session titled “Mining Heritage in the United States: Linking Historical Use with Geoconservation Practices” alongside Thomas Casadevall (USGS, Chair of the U.S. Geoheritage Advisory Group). This session explored scientific discoveries, historical mining practices, and the ways these insights underpin mining heritage and the application of geoconservation methods to the recovery, restoration, and reclamation of mined landscapes.
Located on Michigan Tech’s campus in Houghton, Michigan, the Great Lakes Research Center (GLRC) leads in interdisciplinary research excellence. Situated in a 55,000-square-foot waterfront facility opened in 2012, the GLRC is a dynamic part of Michigan Tech’s landscape as an R1 public research university. Home to five specialized research centers, the GLRC drives innovation across water, land, climate, and community systems.