Prestigious J.A. Hawgood Travel Award presented to TSRG PhD Researcher Montgomery Simus

Treatied Spaces Research Group is delighted to announce that one of its PhD researchers, Montgomery Simus, has been honoured with the University of Birmingham’s J.A. Hawgood Travel Award for American History Postgraduate Research for 2025.

Presented by the Centre for the Study of North America (CSNA), this prestigious annual award – set up in memory of John Arkas Hawgood (1905-1971), Professor of American History at the University of Birmingham – provides travel assistance for a postgraduate researcher to carry out research into any field of American History. 

Monty plans to utilize this generous support to visit Alaska this summer as part of his ongoing PhD research, examining the complex interplay between critical battery mineral extraction, fisheries sustainability, Indigenous rights, and environmental preservation at one of the world’s primary sites of contemporary water cultures in profound conflict: Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay, Alaska.  He will examine tribal documents held at the University of Alaska, and conduct qualitative research through first-person interviews with key actors from industry, government, First Nations, and environmental advocates.  

As Joy Porter, 125th Anniversary Professor of Indigenous and Environmental History and TSRG PI, commented on his Award proposal: ‘Monty’s research is novel, increasingly relevant, and at the forefront of debates across multiple fields. His thesis explores how the global green energy transition will relate to ‘Indian Country’. He is making a robust case for Indigenous-led resource ownership and control over energy transition mineral development as vital to ensuring that the green energy revolution is just and sustainable.  His research will shed important new light on how a just and inclusive green energy future can honour both environmental integrity and Indigenous sovereignty.’

Monty and TSRG are grateful for the Hawgood family’s generosity, and would like to also thank the University of Birmingham’s Centre for the Study of North America.