Tag Archives: Protocol

Module 4 (Post 1) – Authentic Engagement of First Nations and Metis Traditional Knowledge Keepers in Saskatchewan

The more I read about about Traditional Knowledge and Indigenous Science in education, the more I have come to realize that the wisdom of Elders and Knowledge Keepers is an invaluable resource to educators. Speaking from personal experience, I know that it can be difficult to ask for advice or information from Traditional Knowledge Keepers if one doesn’t know the appropriate protocols for respectful engagement. I was very happy to find this resource that is the result of a meeting between 24 First Nations and Metis Knowledge Keepers from the Cree, Saulteaux, Dene,
and Métis nations across Saskatchewan. I believe that the information contained in this resource can help educators to initiate respectful conversation with members of the Indigenous nations in their local regions.

From the document:

“The goal of this document is to outline the consistencies in protocol that emerged from across the province of Saskatchewan. Therefore, this document is intended to only be a starting point for community agencies to begin working collaboratively with First Nations and Métis Traditional Knowledge Keepers.”

Find the document here.

Module 4: Post 1 – Artificial Intelligence and Indigenous Language Preservation and Revitalization

The article Indigenous Knowledge and Technology at MIT: “Is it Wise?” discusses various diverse domains such as the decolonization of space, re-imagining Indigenous architecture, and the role of community-based governance in the genetic modification of invasive species. One of the research projects called protocol-based Artificial Intelligence caught my attention. They briefly discuss how “Aspects of the Anishinaabe worldview, knowledge generation, and dissemination protocol to ask if ‘values might be articulated in a manner that retains their cultural integrity’ rather than having algorithms rely on translation from a high-resourced language.”

The concept of artificial intelligence and its use in preserving Indigenous languages has been used in New Zealand. The app Korero Maori was used to collect oral recordings in Indigenous languages. Part of the project’s achievements is restoring the native sound of the language and avoiding the assimilation of English as far as possible.

The article, How AI is helping revitalise indigenous languages discusses data sovereignty; two key phrases that stuck out to me include: “‘We know what it means losing sovereignty,’ . . . ‘Data is the new land. Having our land taken off us, and the experience of language loss in our family, we take data sovereignty very seriously.” Secondly, “If we want to use AI for good, rather than big tech gobbling up our data and selling it back to us, we should empower communities to lead their own platforms and solutions to help move their people forward.”

I think we are just getting started with how AI can be used to help preserve Indigenous languages, protocols need to be followed, and more work needs to be done moving forward.