The Data Sovereignty Research Collaborative (DSRC, or The Collaborative) is a new space at FNIGC for applied research and creative inquiry into First Nations data sovereignty, including the community-led development of tools and standards for asserting and respecting The First Nations Principles of OCAP®.
The Collaborative works with FNIGC’s various units (including Research and Information, Education and Training, The First Nations Data Centre, and the National Data Champion Team), as well as First Nations communities, education and research institutes, non-profits, and Knowledge Keepers.
The Collaborative’s work is varied because First Nations’ data is varied, and it is organized in a way that celebrates this fact. In this spirit, it:
- recognizes that data and information come in many different forms, and that there are different data and information world views, protocols, systems, science, and theories;
- operates in several complementary modes including tool development, exploratory research, engaging in listening activities and participating in education;
- works across multiple domains such as data systems impacting First Nations services and governance, post-secondary research, and global Indigenous collaboration; and
- participates in networks spanning multiple literacies including archival, library, and information sciences, First Nations language and knowledge sharing protocols, big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and collaborative inquiry design.
A key attribute of the work is to respect that First Nations data is sacred to First Nations, and each has the right to own and govern their collective data and knowledge gifts as self-determined, self-governing First Nations. As a collaborative, the DSRC works with other First Nations and allied research, education, and governance bodies and helps build opportunities for First Nations students, thought leaders and early career data workers to carry these critical perspectives into their relations and places of influence.