Towards an Indigenous Vision for the Information Society

Indigenous Media Network

Presentation

The Information Society as a Cultural Concept

• Information is processed against an existing body of knowledge, which defines its meaning and value

• Information is as diverse as individual, social and cultural diversity

• The concept of knowledge is as diverse as the idea of information

• Communication is shaped by and depends on culturally defined regulations

Indigenous Knowledge

• Linked to relationship with ancestral territories

• System of knowledge and practices

• Provides philosophy defining the place of humans in the “web of life”

• Includes inherent ethics for interaction between human, natural and spiritual worlds

Traditional Knowledge and Indigenous Ethics

• Traditional knowledge includes Indigenous ethics towards:

- Utilization of resources for human use

- Application of knowledge for human purposes

Traditional Knowledge and Indigenous Customary Law

• Indigenous customary law provides for:

- classification of different types of knowledge

- Proper procedures for its acquisition and sharing

- Rights and responsibilities which attach to its possession

Summary: What is Indigenous Knowledge?

• Deeply holistic• Collective in nature• Contains an entire

worldview• Rooted to a particular

place• Some of its aspects are

sacred and secret

• Includes social and political relations

• Includes regulations for its use and dissemination

• Managing principles: 1.Stewardship 2.Guardianship 3.Intergenerational responsibility

Guardianship over Traditional Knowledge

• Elders and other traditional authorities

• Certain or all males/females

• Certain clans/families• Specialists

• Age specific

• Gender specific

• Social and individual responsibilities

Traditional Knowledge and Information Communication

• Sharing and acquiring knowledge involve specific procedures to be observed:

- Exchange of information, with appropriate protocols to follow, highly depend on the given communication situation and its actors

- Information communication is bound to the ethical and cultural obligations related to the shared knowledge

- Teachings are specific in time and place, and adapted to the respective recipient(s)

Oral Transmission of Indigenous Knowledge

• Allows adaptation to the context of the situation and the maturity of the receiver(s)

• Allows adaptation to readiness of recipient(s) to use the given information responsibly

• Allows fullfilling ethical obligations related to the communicated knowledge and information

Indigenous Knowledge in the Economy of the Information Society

• Traditional knowledge is increasingly reduced to

- an important resource

- valuable raw material

for the knowledge - economy

of the Information Society

• Indigenous knowledge, cultivars and inventions are mainly utilized by:

- agri-business (to improve commercial food and fibre crops)

- pharmaceutical industry (production of new drugs)

Commercial Exploitation of

Indigenous Knowledge • Scientific estimates indicate that Indigenous Peoples

possess as much as 99% of existing knowledge about usable species

• Commercial exploitation of traditional knowledge and inventions often takes place without authorization and consent of Indigenous Peoples

• Digitalizing Indigenous knowledge and disseminating it as local content, places it in the public domain and thus makes it vulnerable to exploitation

Traditional Knowledge and the Public Domain Concept

Public Domain- Developed in the framework of

European economic philosophy

- Includes knowledge and information that is considered shared, disclosed or generally known

- Is considered a common resource

- Viewed freely available for economic utilization

Traditional Knowledge- Is not recognized as a valid

economic, legal, ethical and philosophical framework

- Is denied its holistic concept including related protocols for sharing and dissemination

- Is considered a res nullius and is appropriated from Indigenous Peoples

- Is denied its ethical implications and related cultural obligations

The Public Domain as a Backbone of the Information Society

• Access to a vibrant public domain is the backbone of the envisioned global Information Society

• At the same time, Indigenous Peoples need to assert their rights and obligations towards their traditional knowledge

Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) – A Solution for Indigenous Peoples?

IPRs

- temporary protection of a creative work against commercial use by third parties

- often require disclosure of related knowledge and thus placing it into the public domain

- are an instrument to reap economic benefits from a commercial creative work by granting the owner temporary private property rights

Traditional Knowledge

- protection of knowledge as such against unauthorized use and commercial exploitation

- permanent removal from the public domain, unless authorized by Indigenous Peoples

- commercial exploitation is often problematic, since creation is considered a gift with human owners as custodians and future generations as strong rights-holders

Challenges and Potentials for Indigenous Peoples

1. For Indigenous Peoples, two essential questions emerge regarding their participation in the Information Society:

2. Is it possible to share their knowledge and information without violating their cultural obligations and customary laws?

3. Is it possible to utilize ICTs within their cultural contexts without risking to lose their cultural identity?

Towards an Indigenous Vision for the Information Society

- Indigenous participation must be rights-based

- Its implementation and applications must be culturally appropriate

- It must include Indigenous philosophies and ethics

Adequate Rights of Indigenous Peoples

• Equal participation of Indigenous Peoples in the Information Society requires:

- New standard setting activities to develop adequate Rights of Indigenous Peoples in the Information Society

- Recognition of existing Indigenous Rights

Creation of Adequate Legal Instruments

• Full ownership, control and protection of Indigenous cultural and intellectual property

• Alternatives to the application of the public domain concept to their knowledge and cultural expressions

• Alternatives to the application of current IPR regimes to their knowledge

• Recognition of Indigenous culturally diverse concepts and provisions of their customary laws in defining the term intellectual and cultural property

• Recognition of Indigenous cultural obligations towards communication and dissemination, use and application of their knowledge

• Legal protection must recognize:1. collective nature of knowledge2. culturally diverse concepts of ownership and ethical implications3. multi-generational view

ICTs andIndigenous Communication

• ICTs are a cultural expression of the society that has developed them

• ICT-applications for Indigenous Peoples have to be culturally appropriate and must adapt to Indigenous modes of communication

• Indigenous Peoples must be able to determine ICT-utilization in their communities on their own terms

Recognizing Existing Indigenous Rights in the Information Society

• Recognition of existing Indigenous Rights is essential to:

- allow Indigenous Peoples to participate in the Information Society without losing their cultural identity

- support the survival of their living cultures without risking their museumization

Essential Indigenous Rights

• Rights to ancestral territories

• Rights to transmission of cultural values and customary laws

• Rights to educational systems and traditional knowledge transmission

• Rights to Indigenous languages

• Rights to the integrity of Indigenous health systems and healing practices

ICTs cannot replace elements of the living Indigenous culture

• ICTs cannot replace traditional elements of Indigenous cultures, such as:

- interaction with ancestral territories for generation and preservation of knowledge

- inter-generational knowledge transmission

Participation of Indigenous Peoples is vital

• Indigenous Peoples must control and determine ICT-utilization in their communities

• Involvement of Elders and other traditional authorities in related decision-making processes is important

To identify:- culturally appropriate content- culturally appropriate forms of digitalization of Indigenous

cultural elements- culturally appropriate e-applications

Indigenous Peoples are affected by the Digital Divide

• Lack of basic infrastructure

• Availability of servers

• Lack of knowledge on operating and maintaining ICTs

• Lack of electricity and telephone services

• Lack of equipment

• Lack of financial resources for necessary acquisitions

Overcoming the Digital Divide

• Indigenous Peoples have the right to bridge the digital divide on their own terms

• Avenues to take include:1. Design of culturally appropriate ICT capacity-building programs by Indigenous ICT experts2. Indigenous-Indigenous co-operation programs3. Support for “Elders-and-Youth” Initiatives to develop strategies for bridging the digital divide

ICTs could become a useful Complementary Tool

• If all these pre-conditions are met, ICTs could become a usefull complementary tool for:

- Preservation of Indigenous cultures and languages

- Indigenous education (especially through distant learning)

- Indigenous language training

- Health assistance for remote Indigenous communities

- Environmental education and monitoring

- Support for traditional ways of life, for instance: nomadic communities

Other Important Applications

Other important applications include:

- E-business

- Establishment of Indigenous Media

- Intercultural education and combating racism and discrimination against Indigenous Peoples

Indigenous Research is vital to develop

Indigenous ICT-approaches

• Promotion of Indigenous research to explore Indigenous aspirations of Indigenous Peoples towards the Information Society and challenges and potentials they perceive

• Support for Indigenous Studies to develop strategies of Indigenous Peoples how to bridge the digital divide in their regions on their own terms and ensure affordable access solutions

• Design of culturally appropriate capacity-building instruments on ICT-use by Indigenous experts to allow for informed decision-making of Indigenous Peoples on their ICT-needs

• Support for Indigenous research on the effects of ICT-utilization on the survival of Indigenous cultures, languages and identities

Intercultural Communication on the Evolution and Implementation of the Information Society

• Intercultural communication between Indigenous and non-Indigenous

actors of the Information Society is essential to

- allow for equal participation of Indigenous Peoples

- include Indigenous visions and philosophies in the process of its evolution and implementation

- develop respect for Indigenous cultural obligations and protocols

Mechanisms of Intercultural Exchange

• Establishment of a high-level mechanisms that brings together Indigenous and non-Indigenous actors

• Promotion of exchange between Indigenous and non-Indigenous practitioners to foster mutual understanding and develop solutions that respect Indigenous approaches

The Web of Life and the Global Net

Q: What is the Indigenous Vision of the Information Society?

A: The Global Net as the Embodiment of the Web of Life