AISP Toolkit Feb25 2025 - Flipbook - Page 69
from research as those living on Tribal lands because of living outside of the geographic borders in
which their Tribal Nation holds governance authority. Nevertheless, researchers should familiarize
themselves with appropriate research approval processes for the urban Indigenous communities with
whom they wish to partner.17
Terminology Style Guide, Native Governance Center, 2021
Indigenous Identity: More Than “Something Else,” Native Americans in Philanthropy, 2020
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), Indian Law
Resource Center, 2007
After completing both informal and formal Tribal consultation processes to engage meaningfully
with Tribal and other Indigenous partners around data use, you must then apply an equity lens at
each stage of the data life cycle as it relates to this population.
When planning a project, develop a data governance framework with Tribal or Indigenous
partners that includes a plan for stewarding their data (e.g., Tribal a昀케liation, geographic
boundaries of Tribal Jurisdictional Areas or Ancestral Lands). Tribal counsel should be at
the table when legal decisions are made around access and use. If there is ambiguity about
whether a particular use is permissible, it is important to prioritize getting social license and
approval from Tribal leaders and counsel. Also be cognizant that your priorities may not be a
priority for Tribal or Indigenous partners and you may need to shift directions in order to come
to agreement about project scope and aims.
When designing data collection, work with Tribal partners to discern how to gather data that
can best identify Tribal members, lands, resources, and services and allow for meaningful
analysis (e.g., collecting Tribal a昀케liation data by including a comprehensive list of options to
pick from while also allowing space for people to self-identify). Ask Tribal partners how their
community would like to participate in data collection.
To honor the government-to-government relationship that Tribal Nations are entitled to,
make sure that there is a clear plan in place to grant Tribal or Indigenous partners data
access and to return any data and analyses to these communities in ways that are helpful to
them.
When doing demographic data analysis, consider counting people who identify as Indigenous
alone or in combination with other identities (e.g., checking a single box for American Indian/
Alaska Native (AI/AN) vs. checking multiple boxes that include AI/AN) and people who have
written in their a昀케liation(s) when the appropriate box was not listed on a data collection tool.
WORKING WITH TRIBAL AND INDIGENOUS DATA ACROSS THE DATA LIFE CYCLE
Although language may shift over time and not all terms have universal de昀椀nitions, the following
resources provide an introduction to Native identities and their distinctions. You can also rely on Tribal
partners for guidance about how they should be referenced in datasets and written materials.
Contextualize the results of data analysis with the history of colonization and the conditions
it created for Tribal or Indigenous communities—especially when interpreting and presenting
results related to challenges.18
17 Haozous, E. A., Lee, J., & Soto, C. (2021). Urban American Indian and Alaska native data sovereignty: ethical issues. American
Indian and Alaska native mental health research, 28(2), 77.
18 Phillips-Beck, W., Star, L., & Leggett, S. (2024). Navigating Indigenous Data Sovereignty: A Decolonizing Approach to
Understanding Opioid Use Amongst First Nations in Manitoba. International Journal of Population Data Science.; First Nations
Health and Social Secretariat of Manitoba: https://www.fnhssm.com/.
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