Grounding Indigenous Rights

What is Local Contexts?

Local Contexts is a global initiative that supports Indigenous communities with tools that can reassert cultural authority in heritage collections and data. By focusing on Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property and Indigenous Data Sovereignty, Local Contexts helps Indigenous communities repatriate knowledge and gain control over how data is collected, managed, displayed, accessed, and used in the future.

Local Contexts recognizes the inherent sovereignty that Indigenous communities have over knowledge and data that comes from their lands, territories, and waters.

Local Contexts Labels and Notices were created to ground intellectual and cultural property rights in cultural heritage, data, and genetic resources within digital environments.

The Labels and Notices are generated and managed using the Local Contexts Hub.

Indigenous communities

reinforce rights by applying TK and BC Labels

Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Biocultural (BC) Labels establish Indigenous cultural authority and governance over Indigenous data and collections by adding provenance information and contextual metadata (including community names), protocols, and permissions for access, use, and circulation.

Institutions and researchers

disclose interests by placing Notices

Black square with the letters BC in the middle in white.

Notices are tools for institutions, repositories, and researchers to support ethical use and reinforce relationships with Indigenous communities. They also work to educate the public around Indigenous rights and interests in historical and future collections and data.

What is the Local Contexts Hub?

The Local Contexts Hub is a web portal that enables the customization of Labels by Indigenous communities and the generation of Notices by institutions and researchers. Labels and Notices can be applied to Local Contexts Projects created within the Hub depending on the account type.

Community

Community accounts can customize TK and BC Labels to display local and traditional protocols. The Labels are used as digital signifiers to explain how Indigenous history and culture is accessed and used going forward. These Labels can be attached by community accounts to Local Contexts Projects.

Institution

Institution accounts can apply Notices to Local Contexts Projects. Local Contexts Projects document information about a particular item, collection, sample, etc. Applying Notices allows institutions to engage acknowledge, and make visible Indigenous interests in collections, information, and data.

Researcher

Researcher accounts are specifically for independent researchers. Researcher accounts are very similar to institution accounts but only have one member, the account creator. Researchers can apply Notices to Local Contexts Projects that document particular data or research you may have conducted.

Hub Users

51

Communities

58

Institutions

194

Researchers

34

Countries

News and Updates

Niiwin #DataBack Day

Mar 20, 2026 On February 20, 2026, Local Contexts team members presented as a part of #DataBack Day, an online convening hosted by Niiwin, the community-focused data platform…

First global standard on Indigenous Peoples’ data

Jan 8, 2026 The newly adopted “IEEE Recommended Practice for Provenance of Indigenous Peoples' Data,” is the first-ever international standard that calls for “appropriate disclosure of Indigenous peoples’…

Donate to the Label Development Fund

Dec 2, 2025 Local Contexts is connected with Indigenous communities, institutions, researchers, and integration partners around the world. For the past 15 years, our relationships have helped us…

Omeka certified as first Integration Partner

Sep 17, 2025 Omeka has become a certified Integration Partner on the Local Contexts Hub. “We are ecstatic to have Omeka become a certified Integration Partner, the first…

Upcoming Events

Local Contexts Hub Information Session

December 2, 2026
, 22:00 UTC
“Information Session.” Text on decorative blue-green background.

Do you have questions about Local Contexts or the Local Contexts Hub? Curious about how you can use the Traditional Knowledge and Biocultural Labels and Notices to support Indigenous data sovereignty and cultural authority? Sign-up for a group informational or Hub demonstration session with the Local Contexts team!

Local Contexts Hub Information Session

October 14, 2026
, 19:00 UTC
“Information Session.” Text on decorative blue-green background.

Do you have questions about Local Contexts or the Local Contexts Hub? Curious about how you can use the Traditional Knowledge and Biocultural Labels and Notices to support Indigenous data sovereignty and cultural authority? Sign-up for a group informational or Hub demonstration session with the Local Contexts team!

Genomic Standards Consortium 2026

August 12, 2026 - August 14, 2026
 
“Presentations and events” on decorative background.

Local Contexts team members will present at the 26th International Meeting of the Genomics Standards Consortium in Rotorua, Aotearoa New Zealand. This GSC meeting will bring together researchers, data stewards, and standards developers to examine how genomic repositories can support responsible, interoperable, and culturally grounded uses of AI.  On August 12 NZT, Executive Director Hop …

State of the World’s Plants and Fungi Symposium

June 29, 2026 - July 1, 2026
 
“Presentations and events” on decorative background.

Local Contexts Strategic Advisor Maui Hudson (Whakatōhea) will present as part of the State of the World’s Plants and Fungi Symposium, online and in-person at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in London, UK. On July 1 UTC, Maui will present “Acknowledging local contexts: Recognising Indigenous knowledge and provenance as part of the biocultural value of collections” …