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

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…

UMass Amherst Libraries join Local Contexts as Subscriber

Aug 28, 2025 With subscription, UMass leading the way for transformational practice that connects Indigenous cultural authority to collections and research.

Upcoming Events

AAIA 11th Annual Repatriation Conference

February 26, 2026
, 19:00 UTC - 20:30 UTC
“Association on American Indian Affairs. 11th annual repatriation conference. February 2026.” Conference seal with maroon and gray turtle, leaves, and other shapes.

The Association on American Indian Affairs’ 11th Annual Repatriation Conference will focus on “Feeding the Fire: Advancing the Movement.” Taking place virtually across the month of February, this conference will provide a “space to exchange strategies, sharpen skills, share tools, build community, and chart clear pathways forward.” The Local Contexts team will present “Supporting Indigenous …