Wa Ni Ska Tan is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), which is one of three Canadian Government research funding agencies often referred to as the Tri-Agency. We are based out of the Environmental Conservation Lab in the Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources at the University of Manitoba.

Wa Ni Ska Tan Alliance of Hydro-Impacted Communities is a community-academic research partnership that emerged out of the priorities voiced by hydro-impacted Indigenous communities. We are an Indigenous-led organization governed by a Steering Committee made up of impacted communities, university researchers, and NGOs. Members of Wa Ni Ska Tan include researchers, academics, hydro-impacted community members, concerned citizens, and members of the NGO community in Manitoba. Some of our members are also Treaty rights holders with constitutionally-affirmed and protected rights.

For the last seven years we have been documenting and critically evaluating the impacts of hydropower on First Nation communities, land, water, and livelihoods with the goal of increasing awareness of the impacts of hydroelectric projects among the general public and fostering social/environmental change.