Indigenous data sovereignty

Throughout this book, learners will work with publicly released government data from the BC Data Catalogue, Environmental Reporting BC, and the Government of Ontario. Government open data is not the same thing as Indigenous data.

When working with data that pertains to First Nations lands, peoples, knowledge, or resources, learners and instructors are expected to be familiar with two frameworks that govern respectful and rightful data practice:

OCAP® — First Nations principles

The First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) maintains the OCAP® framework, which asserts First Nations’ sovereignty over data about their peoples, communities, and territories. The four principles are:

  • Ownership — communities collectively own information about themselves the way an individual owns personal information.
  • Control — First Nations have the right to control how information about them is collected, used, and disclosed.
  • Access — First Nations must have access to information and data about themselves regardless of where it is held.
  • Possession — physical control of data is the mechanism by which ownership and control can be asserted.

Learn more: https://fnigc.ca/ocap-training/

CARE — global Indigenous data principles

The Global Indigenous Data Alliance maintains the CARE principles, which complement the well-known FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles by adding an explicit ethical and relational layer:

  • Collective benefit — data ecosystems must support Indigenous peoples’ self-determination and collective benefit.
  • Authority to control — Indigenous peoples’ rights and interests must be recognized and their authority over data respected.
  • Responsibility — those working with Indigenous data have a responsibility to share how that data is used to support self-determination and collective benefit.
  • Ethics — Indigenous peoples’ rights and well-being must be the primary concern at all stages of the data lifecycle.

Learn more: https://www.gida-global.org/care

Practical implications for this course

  • The data used in this book is government-published open data. It is appropriate for teaching analytical methods.
  • It is not a substitute for working with First Nations directly. Any forestry analysis that informs decisions affecting First Nations lands must be conducted in partnership with the affected Nation(s), and must respect OCAP and CARE principles.
  • The BC First Nations Forestry Council (https://www.bcfnfc.ca/) is a primary point of reference for forestry-specific Indigenous data and management practice in BC.
  • A complete forestry analysis is more than statistics. Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), oral history, place-based observation, and lived experience are valid and necessary forms of forest knowledge that operate in partnership with — not in opposition to — quantitative methods.