Land Acknowledgement
As an organization that transcends geographic and national boundaries, Local Contexts acknowledges that all of the lands and waters where we live and work are Indigenous Homelands. We recognize the ongoing significance of these lands and waters for Indigenous Peoples in the past, present, and future.
Local Contexts is committed to Indigenous sovereignty and ethical data governance; we believe that naming and addressing the violence of settler-colonialism and its ongoing effects is central to the work that we do. The legacy of settler-colonialism has manifested in the structural exclusion and erasure of Indigenous people within institutions that steward collections of Indigenous heritage and data. The (mis)information or absence of information within these institutions and their systems continues to pose enduring challenges that adversely affect Indigenous communities.
We have responsibilities and obligations to support Indigenous peoples, communities, and organizations. In our efforts to overcome the legacies of settler-colonialism, Local Contexts was developed to create effective and recognized pathways for implementing and maintaining Indigenous data rights and facilitate ethical relationships and enable collaboration with stewards of Indigenous collections.
We ask you to acknowledge these truths and join us in our commitment to acting as respectful guests within the homelands in which we live and work.
To learn more about Indigenous homelands visit www.native-land.ca.
![Text on a decorative yellow background: “[The] transition to more relational science practices is not only about more inclusive science, it is about upholding Indigenous Peoples’ sovereignty and self-determination, and adhering to the free, prior, and informed consent for engaging with data.” Lydia Jennings, Katherine Jones, Riley Taitingfong, Andrew Martinez, Dominique David-Chavez, Rosanna ‘Anolani Alegado, Adrien Tofighi-Niaki, Julie Maldonado, Bill Thomas, Dennis Dye, Jeff Weber, Katie V. Spellman, Scott Ketchum, Ruth Duerr, Noor Johnson, Jennifer Balch, & Stephanie Russo Carroll in “Governance of Indigenous Data in Open Earth Systems Science,” Nature Communications (2025)16:572, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-53480-2.](https://localcontexts.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Nature-Communications-25-2-3-2.png)
![Text on decorative green background. “Creating a world in which animals in museums are cared for in a culturally connected way requires first caring about identification. [Then we] can flag items for return or create opportunities for communities with ties to these remains to provide meaningful context for their care.” Jimmy Arterberry (Comanche Nation) from “Better Care Urged for Animal Remains Tied to Indigenous People,” by Amanda Heidt, Science Magazine (January 2, 2025). White Local Contexts logo in bottom right corner.](https://localcontexts.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Science-MagazineAnimal-Remains.png)
![Text on a decorative yellow background: “It’s not a free-for-all… ‘Accessible’ means somebody can access it but you are still allowed to regulate it… [To scientists who might feel strongly about unrestricted access to data:] you should check your ethics. That kind of thinking assumes best intentions, but [is] a little bit naïve, and within that naïveté is where bad actors can slip in.” Rosie Alegado (Kanaka ʻŌiwi) in “Open with Care: Indigenous researchers and communities are reshaping how Western science thinks about data ownership” by Sandeep Ravindran, Science Magazine Text on a decorative yellow background: “Too often Indigenous Peoples have been told … they need to contribute their DNA so that it benefits humankind, and unfortunately Indigenous Peoples are the last to benefit…If that means upending the model so that Indigenous Peoples have proper stewardship and ownership of their data, then that’s a data future that I’m optimistic for.” Krystal Tsosie (Diné) in “Open with Care: Indigenous researchers and communities are reshaping how Western science thinks about data ownership” by Sandeep Ravindran, Science Magazine](https://localcontexts.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2-e1730828572667.png)
