Indigenous Pathways into Social Research: Voices of a New Generation

414 Pages·2013·7.479 MB·English

by  Donna M Mertens (editor), Fiona Cram (editor), Bagele Chilisa (editor)

IndIgenous Pathways Into
socIal ReseaRch

IndIgenous Pathways Into
socIal ReseaRch
Voices of a new generation
Donna M. Mertens
Fiona Cram
Bagele Chilisa
Editors
walnut creek, california
leFt coast PRess, Inc.
1630 north Main street, #400
walnut creek, ca 94596
http://www.lcoastPress.com
copyright © 2013 by left coast Press, Inc.
All rights reserved. no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in
a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permis-
sion of the publisher.
IsBn 978-1-59874-695-2 hardback
IsBn 978-1-59874-696-9 paperback
IsBn 978-1-59874-697-6 institutional eBook
IsBn 978-1-61132-684-0 consumer eBook
library of congress cataloging-in-Publication data:
Indigenous pathways into social research : voices of a new generation / donna
M. Mertens, Fiona cram, Bagele chilisa, editors.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
IsBn 978-1-59874-695-2 (hardback : alk. paper) — IsBn 978-1-59874-696-9
(pbk. : alk. paper) — IsBn 978-1-59874-697-6 (institutional eBook) — IsBn
978-1-61132-684-0 (consumer eBook)
1. Indigenous peoples—Research. 2. social sciences—Research. I. Mertens,
donna M. II. cram, Fiona. III. chilisa, Bagele.
gn380.I5289 2012
300.72—dc23
2012032798
Printed in the united states of america
∞ ™ the paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
american national standard for Information sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed library Materials, ansI/nIso Z39.48–1992.
Contents
list of Illustrations 7
Preface 9
chapter 1 the Journey Begins 11
Fiona Cram, Bagele Chilisa, and Donna M. Mertens
chapter 2 the Process that led Me to Become an Indigenous
Researcher 41
Andrina Komala Lini Thomas (Vanuatu)
chapter 3 I never Really had any Role Models 59
Art Hernandez (Mexico/United States)
chapter 4 Indigenism, Public Intellectuals, and the Forever
opposed—or, the Makings of a “Hori academic” 71
Brad Coombes (Aotearoa New Zealand)
chapter 5 Becoming a Kaupapa Ma-ori Researcher 89
Cherryl Smith (Aotearoa New Zealand)
chapter 6 an african narrative: the Journey of an Indigenous
social Researcher in south africa 101
Kholeka Constance Moloi (South Africa)
chapter 7 drawn from the traditions of cameroon:
lessons from twenty-one years of Practice 123
Debazou Yantio Yantio (Cameroon)
chapter 8 Indigenous Research with a cultural context 133
Fiona Hornung (Australia)
chapter 9 Being and Becoming an Indigenous social Researcher 153
Gabriel Cruz Ignacio (Mexico)
chapter 10 Indigenous Researcher’s thoughts: an experience
from Research with communities in Burkina Faso
using Participatory Methods 171
Issaka Herman Traore (Burkina Faso)
chapter 11 Becoming an Indigenous Researcher in Interior
alaska: sharing the transformative Journey 189
James Johnson, III (Alaska)
chapter 12 an aboriginal health worker’s Research story 203
Juanita Sherwood (Australia)
chapter 13 nurturing the gift of understanding
different Realities 219
Keiko Kuji-Shikatani (Japan/Canada)
chapter 14 Inuujunga: the Intricacy of Indigenous and western
epistemologies in the arctic 239
Looee Okalik (Canada)
chapter 15 the context within: My Journey into Research 249
Manulani Aluli Meyer (Hawai’i)
chapter 16 Prospects and challenges of Becoming an
Indigenous Researcher 261
Motheo Koitsiwe (South Africa)
chapter 17 hinerauwha-riki: tapestries of life for Four
Ma-ori women in evaluation 277
Nan Wehipeihana, Kataraina Pipi, Vivienne Kennedy,
and Kirimatao Paipa (Aotearoa New Zealand)
chapter 18 Research in Relationship with humans, the spirit
world, and the natural world 299
Polly Walker (United States)
chapter 19 lens from the “Bottom of the well” 317
Ricardo Alfonso Millett (Panama)
chapter 20 Neyo way in ik issi: a Family Practice of Indigenist
Research Informed by land 333
Shawn Wilson and Alexandria Wilson (Alaska)
chapter 21 a native Papua new guinea Researcher 353
Simon Passingan (Papua New Guinea)
chapter 22 From Refusal to getting Involved in
Romani Research 367
Rocío García, Patricia Melgar, and Teresa Sordé
in conversation with Luisa Cortés, Coral Santiago,
and Saray Santiago (Spain)
chapter 23 Interpreting the Journey: where words,
stories Formed 381
Victoria Hykes Steere (Alaska)
chapter 24 the onward Journey 395
César A. Cisneros Puebla (Mexico)
Index 403
about the editors 407
Illustrations
Tables
table 8.1 self-Identified advantages and disadvantages
of an australian aboriginal Researcher 145
table 10.1 Participatory Methods and women’s satisfaction
with services social accountability Matrix 184
table 15.1 holographic summary of Indigenous/Quantum/
enduring epistemology 257
table 21.1 timeline of work experiences 356
Figures
Figure 4.1 childhood Illustration of Purakaunui and
Its Politics of Place 76
Figure 8.1 B asic elements for a Researcher of Indigenous
Peoples and communities 141
Figure 8.2 cultural connectivity 148
Figure 12.1 the Model: a living Method, Illustrated by
willurei Kirkbright-Burney 2010 213
Figure 21.1 simon Passingan trekking on yawan
community land 359

Preface
this volume has been motivated by a mix of curiosity and hope. around
the world, Indigenous peoples experience inequalities that push them
to the edge of society, make them unwell, and often result in premature
death. while many non-Indigenous people are committed to eliminating
these disparities, the voices of Indigenous peoples themselves need to be
heard loudly and clearly in terms of their own accounts of their histories,
their present-day needs and priorities, and their aspirations and dreams
for their future. the involvement of Indigenous people in research and
evaluation is an important part of enabling this to happen.
the task of becoming an Indigenous researcher or evaluator is not
straightforward. those wishing to pursue this path may venture out into
the world from a place of family poverty. they may face the challenges of
education systems that passively exclude non-majority students. and then
there is the task of unpacking research and evaluation systems that may not
be particularly responsive to Indigenous knowledge and ways of knowing.
not all journeys are the same. and not all motivations for under-
taking this journey are the same. hence, our curiosity about what led
Indigenous people to step on the pathway to becoming a researcher
or evaluator and what and who the barriers and enablers were along
that pathway. we particularly wanted to know about the people who
nurtured, mentored, and supported them. we were also curious about
their approaches to conducting research and evaluation with Indigenous
communities and the extent to which they applied their values and cul-
tural heritage in their research approaches.
we also hoped that, in the first instance, we would be able to locate
Indigenous researchers and evaluators from around the world and that
Indigenous Pathways into Social Research, edited by donna M. Mertens, Fiona
cram, and Bagele chilisa, 9–10. ©2013 left coast Press, Inc. all rights reserved.
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