Where did SORA come from? In the simplest words, from interested and concerned citizens who harvest wild rice. Research being conducted by Annette Drewes may have been the catalyst to bring people together, but it was the participation of harvesters that gave life and direction to SORA. Read on….
Community Meetings
In July of 2006 funding became available through a U.S. Community Forestry Research Fellowship from the University of California-Berkeley for the purpose of furthering participatory action research or PAR within the doctorate research of Ms. Drewes. PAR approaches, primarily used since the early 1990’s in community forestry, commonly include three elements: inclusion of research subjects in the research process; effecting change in social power structures; and producing new knowledge through formal processes involving those who are active participants in the phenomenon being studied. While harvesters had been limited in their involvement in research
up to this point, mainly through tribal advisory committees and interviews, new funding provided an opportunity to bring managers and harvesters together to engage in information sharing; to create a formal process for providing comment and input on management and regulation of wild rice; and to explore options for gaining a voice in the long term protection and sustainability of wild rice.
Using initial harvester contacts from site visits, local newspaper announcements and community fliers for advertising, meetings were held near each of the study sites (Figure 6-2). Community meetings were held between January 23rd and February 6th, 2007 on weeknights from 6-8:30 p.m., with refreshments provided. A total of 109 people participated in meetings at the following locations: Ball Club, Bagley, Aitkin and Tower in Minnesota; and Webster and Mole Lake in Wisconsin.
Each meeting followed the same format, beginning with a presentation from either GLIFWC, Ducks Unlimited, Inc. or a tribal representative on local wild rice management, followed by an overview of the research being conducted through UW (this research), concluding with information on genetic engineering issues in regards to wild rice, provided by the White Earth Land Recovery Program. Attendees were welcomed and invited to submit issues, in writing, that were important to them. These issues were then grouped by the meeting facilitator and, after the presentations on management and research, participants were asked to self-identify with a topic area and join in a discussion group. Each group kept their own notes and participants were free to change groups at any time. A complete report on the harvester meetings can be found here.
The results of the harvester meetings were threefold: they provided information sharing between management and harvesters; introduced harvesters to a regional perspective on wild rice harvest and distribution and; created a synopsis of harvester concerns and issues regarding wild rice harvest and management. This synopsis of 
harvester concerns was made available on the internet. In addition, at each community meeting, harvesters were asked about the need for and the interest in developing some form of wild rice advisory group to engage harvesters in longer term discussions and possible action. This resulted in a contact list of over 100 harvesters and managers, leading to the formation of a working alliance.
A first step at organization (SORA)
On Saturday, July 28th, 2007 an organizational meeting, facilitated by the author, was held at the University of Minnesota Cloquet Forestry Research Center. Participants included natural resource managers involved in wild rice management, both state and tribal; harvesters from across Minnesota, both state and tribal; and interested citizens. Although invitations were extended to Wisconsin harvesters, no one was able to attend. Winona LaDuke, active in wild rice issues on the White Earth Reservation and through her organization, White Earth Land Recovery Project, made a statement during the discussions that a unified voice for wild rice needed to be created; one that is not ‘Indian or white.’ There was strong agreement on this by those present.
Results of this meeting included development of a mission statement and committee work groups, and a decision to continue work on an organizational structure and funding mechanisms. The unofficial name of the group is SORA, which stands for Save Our Rice Alliance (our registered name now). The acronym plays off the small and shy sora rail (Porzana Carolina), commonly referred to as a ‘rice hen,’ found in wild rice beds across the region.
The mission of SORA is to integrate science, community and education for the conservation and sustainability of native wild rice ecosystems.
Discussion in regards to the work of SORA included: supporting harvesters through education, involvement, harvesting information and practices; educating others (lake shore owners, recreational boaters, etc.); and actively engaging harvesters in discussions of wild rice management and research needs. Four committees, with co-chairs, were created to facilitate this work: education, communication, market place and the ‘green thing,’ which deals with a wide array of resource management issues.
In early 2008 SORA was the recipient of a National Forest Foundation Community Assistance Program (CAP) grant of $15,000 for start up community-based conservation organizations. This funding is being run through the Giziibii Resource Conservation and Development Association in Bemidji, Minnesota, an organization serving as fiscal agent for the newly forming SORA.