Designing Indigenous-Led Archival Futures: The Application of Indigenous Research Methodologies Within Archival Research and Practice

Kirsten Thorpe

doi:10.37683/asa.v52.10991

Kirsten Thorpe Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Research and Education, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2844-168X

DOI: https://doi.org/10.37683/asa.v52.10991

Keywords: Indigenous research methodologies, Indigenous archives, Indigenous research paradigm, Yarning methods, Indigenous Storywork

Abstract

This paper discusses the role and importance of Indigenous research methodologies in building spaces for Indigenous-led archival futures in Australia. It considers the development of professional statements of support for advancing First Nations engagement and Indigenous self-determination in the archives as an example of where Indigenous research methodologies and methods can increase Indigenous agency and decision-making in the archives. The research design, methodologies and methods, including Yarning, Indigenous Standpoint and Indigenous Storywork, utilised in the research project Unclasping the White Hand: Reclaiming and Refiguring the Archives to Support Indigenous Wellbeing and Sovereignty are discussed to highlight the importance of bridging gaps between research and practice. In doing this, it describes pathways for building respectful and ethical research in partnership with First Nations people in Australia. It contributes to dialogue on how these approaches can support the decolonisation of archival research, which in turn has the power to build transformations of practice to support First Nations archival priorities.

Author Biography

Kirsten Thorpe, Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Research and Education, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia

Dr Kirsten Thorpe (Worimi, Port Stephens), Associate Professor, is a Chancellor’s Indigenous Research Fellow at the Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education & Research, University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Kirsten leads the Indigenous Archives and Data Stewardship Hub, which advocates for Indigenous rights in archives and data, and develops research and engagement in relation to refiguring libraries and archives to support the culturally appropriate ownership, management and ongoing preservation of Indigenous knowledges. Kirsten has broad interests in research and engagement with Indigenous protocols and decolonising practices in the library and archive fields, and the broader GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums) sector. Kirsten advocates for the ‘right of reply’ to records, and capacity building and support for the development of Living Indigenous Archives on Country. Kirsten is an invited member of the ICA Expert Group on Indigenous Matters, an elected member of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Indigenous Matters Standing Committee, and a co-founder of the Indigenous Archives Collective.