The scars of colonialism and the erasure of Indigenous scientific knowledges continue to be seen and felt in academic and public spaces. Reframing research from Indigenous perspectives, closing the technology gap and reorienting where research occurs are some of the investigations being led by UBC Forestry Asst. Prof. Warren Cardinal-McTeague.
Warren, who is Métis and Cree from the communities of Lac La Biche and Fort McMurray, has an academic background in botany and plant biology. His current research focuses on plant genomics and biodiversity, as well as Indigenous environmental management and the practice of decolonizing science and education.
Many Indigenous communities feel alienated from academic institutions, Warren notes. However, initiatives such as the Summer internship for INdigenous peoples in Genomics (SING Canada) are making accessible the technology needed for certain types of scientific inquiry. A free, hands-on, week-long intensive workshop for undergraduate and graduate students, as well as postdoctoral and community fellows, SING Canada builds Indigenous capacity and scientific literacy through basic training in the areas of genomics, bioinformatics and Indigenous and decolonial bioethics in the classroom, lab and field. A program that Warren has been involved in for several years, SING Canada shares perspectives that include ethical, environmental, economic, legal and social implications.
This past summer, Warren co-presented a mobile genomics lab that brought equipment and research opportunities to Indigenous community partners. SING Canada participants learned how to sequence soil microbiomes using this mobile technology, while at the same time affirming the research interests of their community partners.
“Indigenous peoples have always been scientists and analyzed questions and information from the world around them, but colonialism largely disrupted these practices,” states Warren. “We are at a point of reclaiming sovereignty over our research interests, and an important part of that is having access to the tools and technology necessary for modern scientific inquiry. From here, Indigenous peoples will be better able to ask questions that relate and provide benefit to their communities.”
Another project Warren has undertaken would reframe the relationship of the collection and storage of Indigenous Knowledge in the form of biological and ecological data from one of exclusion to one of collaboration. For example, museum collections often house samples with data from Indigenous communities without the consent of Indigenous community members. “Indigenous peoples have often been treated as objects of research by settler scientists,” Warren notes.
The Indigenous data sovereignty approach Warren proposes would return governance over Indigenous data to their respective communities.
“Institutions today should work directly with Indigenous communities to rectify past and ongoing harms, as well as affirm principles of Indigenous data sovereignty over the physical samples and digitized data that relate to Indigenous peoples,” says Warren. “True reconciliation means moving away from colonial patterns and towards the return of Indigenous history and identity to its rightful owners.”
This article was originally published in the Spring 2024 issue of Branchlines Magazine. View the full issue here.