Indigenous Knowledge and Resource Management in Northern Australia

Making Collective Memory with Computers

Web Site: http://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/ik/ikhome.html

The IKRMNA was a project that ran from 2003 to 2006 and aimed to support and develop databases that focused on the preservation of Indigenous languages and culture in Northern Australia. It was coordinated by the School of Australian Indigenous Knowledge Systems at Charles Darwin University and received funds from the Australian Research Council. The project developed solutions for institutions, Indigenous communities, published papers and developed software. Among other activities, the project developed a prototype digital systems that allows Indigenous communities to develop a collective memory. TAMI (Text, Audio, Movies and Images) is a database and file management system for IK developed specifically to take into consideration the needs of Australian Aboriginal communities. Interestingly they propose the use of Maps and navigation interfaces since IK is place based.

Links from this site:

There is a link to an animation of TAMI

http://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/ik/db_TAMI.html#

There are many interesting papers such as:

Digital Technologies and Aboriginal Knowledge Practices http://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/ik/pdf/DigTech_IndigPlaceAust.pdf

& Software for Educating Aboriginal Children about Place

http://www.cdu.edu.au/centres/ik/pdf/HRV_for_Kritt_WinegarFINAL4-06.pdf

There are several links to other sites.

Of interest is the link to the Aboriginal Mapping Network that helps Indigenous communities to protect and develop land based resources by using mapping tools. http://www.nativemaps.org/

The Indigenous Knowledge Project

This project is run by the Information Technology & Electrical Engineering of The University of Queensland Australia. The site is not current having been last updated in July, 2008 and the most recent publications are from 2006. However, it is an interesting site on IK management software. The stated objective of the site is to see how IT can be used to allow Indigenous communities to conserve their IK and culture in a sensitive way. The project aims to work with the custodians of IK to develop suitable software that preserves IK while respecting Indigenous protocols with respect to access. It also emphasizes the importance of maintaining ownership and control of  IK within the community.

Web site: http://www.itee.uq.edu.au/~eresearch/projects/ikm/index.html

Web Site Links

The site offers some interesting papers such as “Software Tools for Indigenous Knowledge Management” http://www.itee.uq.edu.au/~eresearch/papers/2003/IKM_software.pdf but of  most interest is the software that the project has developed for IK management.

There is the XML Metadata Editor/Generator Application (XMEG), which allows the user to record metadata onto an IK media file, not only to describe the content, but also to restrict access.

My particular interest is the demo they have created of an Indigenous Knowledge Web site: Indigenous Knowledge Web Demo http://maenad.itee.uq.edu.au/kweb/

In recent readings and posts I have been coming across many first nations groups that I am unfamiliar with.  From  geographical and historical perspectives it is very hard to keep track of the many unique communities across Canada.

One site that has helped me in looking into these groups is www.firstnationsseeker.ca this site lists what appears to most, if not all, of the first nations groups and communities in North America as well as the Caribbean, Russia and Greenland.  The list is organized linguistically which is essentially by geographic region so it is very easy to gain more information about local groups.

For each group a map is provided showing their region as well as any links to native or band sites.  The site lists well over 100 different groups with 1-20 links to individual community sites.

If you are looking for more information on a given first nations group in North America this is a great site to check first.

http://www.sami.uit.no/indexen.html

This website wasn’t quite what I expected, but it is still of interest as an artefact of cultural identity. The Centre exists as a research unit within the University of Tromsø, Norway. As such, the website presentation is suitably dry and academic. In the description of the campus, I found the Sámi Cultural House to be strikingly similar to the way Laurentian University’s new Native Centre has been planned, incorporating natural building materials, natural surroundings and traditional structures (turf hut : teepee). Culturally, this centre seems to be on the outside looking in, as far as I can tell without learning to read Norwegian. Even with studies on Indigenous Policy, Rights and Development, Sámi language courses and cultural events, the centre’s activities appear to be more of a portal between Sámi and Nordic cultures than a participatory player in Sámi culture.

Resources linked from this site include:

Forum for Development Cooperation with Indigenous Peoples
for researchers, development workers, administrators and activists.
Read more …

Survey of Sami and Indigenous
Research

• Read more …
• Register project
• Search the database!

Publications

• Publication series
• Sámi dieđalaš áigečála
• Other publications

The Indigenous University

• Meeting place
• Árdna – The University Sámi Cultural House
• The Juho-Niillas Turf hut
• Honorary Doctor

Studies and Related Activities

Research and Reports

Strategic Planning

[Well, here goes. I’ll break open the floodgates on this blogging project. Please let me know if I’m not on the right track with this posting.]

https://hscssl.unm.edu/nhd/index.cfm?act=app.home

“The Native Health Database contains bibliographic information and abstracts of health-related articles, reports, surveys, and other resource documents pertaining to the health and health care of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Canadian First Nations. The database provides information for the benefit, use, and education of organizations and individuals with an interest in health-related issues, programs, and initiatives regarding North American indigenous peoples.” (from “About the NHD“)

While this database doesn’t focus specifically on technology, it does leverage a digital database and the internet in order to facilitate health-care research through a Native North American lens. A couple of quick searches identified numerous articles that do touch on technology in the delivery of and education about health care in an Indigenous context. Such articles could be used to inform my own research into considering the selection of technology-based delivery methods for theological education in First Nations communities in northern Ontario and Quebec.

Other links from this site include:

• Outreach Connections:
  Native Health Information
• The University of Manitoba, Aboriginal Health Collection
• Indian Health Service Headquarters Publications
• Health Status Profile of American Indians in Arizona: 2007 Data
• New Mexico American Indian Health Status Report 2005
• American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) Data and Links, U.S. Census Bureau
• Pimatisiwin

David Macdonald