Indigenous Knowledges: a Digital Residency Exchange and Best Practices Pilot
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Kent
Department Name: Sch of English
Abstract
A collaborative team from Diné College Special Collections and Kinyaa'áanii Charlie Benally Library (Navajo Nation) and working with museum, library and archive professionals from the Wellcome Collection (UK) and supported by scholars from University of Arizona Southwest Center (US), and University of Kent Centre for Indigenous and Settler Colonial Studies, propose to develop a reciprocal, consultative model for collaborative digital decolonizing of indigenous materials. This model pairs a UK cultural heritage collecting institution with a US tribal college library that fulfills plural functions as library, museum, archive, and cultural heritage institution in its community. Kinyaa'áanii Library and Wellcome Collection will exchange three-week residencies on location, followed by digital residencies for the remaining period of the grant. Using the open-source content management system Local Contexts Hub, the Diné College Research Fellow (DCRF) and University of Kent Research Assistant (UKRA) will identify areas of need to serve as the basis for a larger funding proposal on collaborative strategies of decolonization and reciprocal information-sharing for digitized indigenous materials between US tribal college libraries and UK heritage institutions. The focus will be parallel sample selections of items from Kinyaa'áanii Special Collections and Wellcome. The proposed outcome is to develop and test a working model of digitally-achieved transatlantic reciprocal collaboration between a a tribal college library and archives and a heritage collecting institution. University faculty will provide research context for the project, practical project management, and mentoring for the DCRK and UKRAFellows. By cross-training via the Local Contexts platform, the exchange will lead to two outcomes: 1) a reciprocal digital working model as policy, methodologies, and practical applications begin to be developed collaboratively; 2) a culminating, symposium directed to cultural heritage professionals and tribal college librarians. A collateral goal is to establish a consultative community of practice and model for future digital exchange residencies between U.K. GLAM professionals and North American tribal college LAM professionals.
Publications
French S
(2023)
'Indigenous Knowledges: The Journey So Far'
Schneider S
(2022)
'Indigenous Knowledges: new transatlantic pilot project launched
Schneider S
(2022)
'Indigenous Knowledges: Our Experimental Digital Approach
Schneider S
(2022)
'Indigenous Knowledges: Interview with Research Assistant Sarah French
| Description | The best practices pilot was not intended to discover a "solution" to the principal problem being explored--that of how best to implement Indigenous CARE principles in British institutional online catalogues. The project involved a number of different threads of research, including a residency exchange between Wellcome Trust and Dine College Library, multiple collection enquiries, work with Local Context labelling, and a series of webinars. The 'findings', for want of a better word, centre on the need to establish long-term reciprocal relationships with Indigenous stakeholders; to involve a multiplicity of Indigenous nations in this kind of work; and to develop local communities of care for advisory purposes. Resource implications make this largely impossible for many institutions, but our webinars confirmed wide interest in an exploratory working group to take the enquiry further with a view to collaborative efforts. |
| Exploitation Route | At this point, we are taking them forwards through follow-on funding in the form of an exploratory working group, a workshop series, and work towards an online portal that will facilitate connection and relationship building. |
| Sectors | Culture Heritage Museums and Collections |
| Description | Early publicity for the project elicited a Museums Association article (https://www.museumsassociation.org/museums-journal/news/2022/04/wellcome-collection-joins-pilot-scheme-to-incorporate-indigenous-knowledge-using-digital-tools/?utm_campaign=2135085_26042022&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Museums%20Association&dm_i=2VBX,19RFX,5JK5XW,4Y6MR,1#). This has led to a number of industry enquiries, and interview by Jing Culture and Commerce (https://jingculturecrypto.com/wellcome-collection-indigenous-knowledges/) and invitations to the British Library "Indigenous Ways in Librarianship" discussion group, among other things. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural |
| Description | Collections Showcase |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | An in-person showcase of Wellcome Collection's holdings, focusing on Indigenous and Indigenous-related items, involving project members, curators and other professional practitioners, and postgraduate students from the University of Kent. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Collections Showcase with Murrup Barak |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A second Wellcome Collection collections showcase this time with Murrup Barak in attendance - a group of Indigenous graduate researchers from the University of Melbourne. The session provoked considerable discussion of the needs and responses of Indigenous visitors. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Sprint |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A "Digital Sprint" involving US-based members of the Local Contexts project with curators, archivists, and digital technicians from Wellcome Collections, to examine strategies for implementation of Local Context Labelling in the digital catalogues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Sprint with Digital Engagement Team |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This was a second iteration of the Digital Sprint but with Wellcome's Digital Engagement team in attendance. The session explored possibilities for Local Context application and considered the practicalities and imperatives behind supplementing the existing catalogues. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | IK follow on, Online workshop 1 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | 43 curators, museum studies scholars, and other practitioners attended a workshop to develop an exploratory working group for the implementation of IK protocols in digital catalogues. Feb. 15th 2024. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| Description | Indigenous Knowledges webinars |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | We hosted two webinars, each involving 4 presenters, on a range of issues related to the implementation of Indigenous Knowledge Protocols in digital cataloguing. We had roughly 120 participants over the two days (April 12 and 13, 2023). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Progress Presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Project RA, Sarah French, gave a presentation on the project's progress to the wider Wellcome community. The session provoked conversation in relation to Wellcome's antiracism agenda among other things. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |