This article focuses on documenting indigenous languages and how important it is to have a successful collaboration of all parties involved. One major point that is mentioned in this article is that language projects are multilingual and intercultural in nature.  Therefore, having a corporate management model organizing a project for example, could clash with the cultural practices of the participants.  This would be similar to someone doing research on an indigenous community who is unaware of that communities’ way of life and special cultural traditions.

Many aspects of the entire process involved behind undertaking such a large project of documenting languages take into account some of the following:

• Participants (community members, outside linguists, native speakers, leaders)
• Roles (Mentors, administrators, archivists, tech people, native knowledge experts, sponsors)
• Operations (Design, training, prioritization, management (personnel & equipment), distribution)
• Possible Products (textbook, radio, T.V., newsletter, film, dictionary, data base, writing system, pedagogical materials, conference papers, visit to funders and visits to government officials)
• Finance (funding agency)

When one thinks of doing research I believe that we often overlook how many people are involved and the enormous task it would be to coordinate and organize everyone. Allowing for the research to happen, or in this case, having the process of language documentation run smoothly, would take a lot of commitment on the part of the organizers and all people involved.  Furthermore, I think back on some of the readings we have done and how the way indigenous people deal with time management in comparison with the way westerners may deal with it.  As (Ginsburg, 2003) mentioned, “what in the dominant culture is regarded as a normal production schedule under such circumstances (completing a video in under three weeks) – twelve hours a day – was not appropriate to the pace of life a Yuendumu, Australia”, which created considerable tension during filming.  Therefore, when organizing video projects for language documentation, organizers really need to take into consideration many things, especially how the different cultures can work in harmony together.

References

Dwyer, A. (2010). Models of Successful Collaboration. In N. Louanna Furbee and Lenore A.

          Grenoble, eds. Language Documentation: Practice and Values. Amsterdam: Benjamins:193

          –212. Post print.

Ginsburg, F. (2002).  Screen Memories.  Resignifying the Traditional in Indigenous Media.

          In Media Worlds: Anthropology on a New Terrain.  University of California Press