For the last few years, any time someone would ask me “How is work going?” my answer was some variation of “So busy!” Of course, two huge building projects, a collections move, and transitioning to a new database – all in the past 5 years – has certainly kept me on my toes. However, I have also been working as a co-facilitator to create the Indigenous Collections Care (ICC) Guide.
The ICC Guide is the culmination of five years of collaboration to develop a resource for museums and other institutions to implement culturally appropriate care of Native and Indigenous collections.
I developed the concept for the Guide with my colleague Laura Bryant (Director of Repatriation at Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, OK). We then created a working group of about twenty Indigenous and non-Indigenous museum professionals and academic, Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, and NAGPRA practitioners to discuss all aspects of collections stewardship. Together, we identified the need to establish a framework to help museums and other institutions engage in collections stewardship while prioritizing Indigenous needs and knowledge.
After many months of initial writing, we were fortunate to partner with the School for Advanced Research (SAR) in Santa Fe, NM. With their partnership, the ICC was awarded an IMLS National Leadership in Museums grant to support the development of the Guide and conduct nine content review sessions throughout the process. Those reviews brought over 120 additional voices into the process, including Tribal representatives and citizens, representing both federally and non-federally recognized Native Nations, as well as museum professionals.
The culmination of all this work can be found HERE. The ICC Guide centered Indigenous perspectives, cultural beliefs, and priorities while considering the realities of collections care across institutions with different resources, staffing, and capacity. While the Guide does not contain specific instructions, it does include case studies, sample resources, and tools that institutions can adapt to their own collections and scenarios.
Oh, and I almost forgot to mention the incredible artwork that became part of the final project! Many thanks to Neebinnaukzhik Southall (Chippewas of Rama First Nation) for their efforts as designer and illustrator. I love the illustrations and am sure that you will too.
While I am really proud to have facilitated this incredible project, I also need to thank everyone who was involved and supported the ICC Guide over the past five years. This project was a real lesson in collaboration and I appreciate everyone who shared their time, knowledge, and expertise.
The Peabody 