Implementing the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials: Webinar Series and Resource Toolkit

Funded by the Society of American Archivists Foundation, 2019-2020.

Following the formal endorsement of the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials (PNAAM) by the SAA in 2018, the Native American Archives Section received SAA Foundation funding to create a series of "workshops" communicating aspects of the PNAAM. This project, "Implementing the PNAAM: Webinar Series and Resource Toolkit," will outline the purpose of the PNAAM, the general application of the PNAAM in archival settings, and tangible ways to move forward (institutionally and/or individually) with implementation. Five "workshops," including online discussions, webinars, resource toolkits, and more, and will provide archivists with opportunities to explore topics such as: Outreach & Cultural Competency, How-to-Navigate Tribal Governance Structure, Typical Concerns & How to Respond, and more.

All workshop webinars and additional resources are supported by, and hosted on, the Sustainable Heritage Network through our ongoing collaboration.

*Please note, more details and resources will be added to this page as this project develops. Check back for updates.

"Native American Research Protocols: Workshop Webinar #5."

This fifth session in our five-part webinar series covering various themes of the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials (PNAAM) is an in-depth conversation with Stewart Koyiyuptewa (Hopi), Program Manager of the Hopi Preservation Office, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, author, and one of the original drafters of the PNAAM. The conversation highlights the following major issues: Overview, history, and importance of developing formal Native American Research Protocols to protect traditional knowledge, culture, lifeways, and intellectual property; 2) Examples of how the PNAAM have been successfully implemented at the Hopi Tribe to defend against misappropriation and abuse of tribal traditional knowledge; 3) Lessons learned and practical examples from working with non-Native researchers in tribal communities, as well as successful examples of collaboration with collecting institutions; 4) Memories and stories from drafting the PNAAM. View on the Sustainable Heritage Network here.

"Native American Intellectual Property Rights: Workshop Webinar #4."

This fourth session in our five-part webinar series covering various themes of the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials (PNAAM) is an in-depth conversation with individuals who have developed and collaborated on the Passamaquoddy People project: Donald Soctomah (Passamaquoddy), Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Passamaquoddy Nation; Jane Anderson, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Museum, New York University; and Guha Shankar, Folklife Specialist, Library of Congress. This initiative began in 2014 as a partnership between the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Library of Congress American Folklife and the Local Contexts project, to digitize, curate and expand access to content from various recordings made in March 1890 by anthropologist Jesse Walter Fewekes. This initiative led to the creation of the “Passamaquoddy People” site, using the Mukurtu software, a Passamaquoddy controlled digital archive where the community hosts recordings, as well as add transcriptions and translations in their own time. Learn more and view on the Sustainable Heritage Network here.

"Implementing the PNAAM: Workshop Webinar #3 - Providing Context Through Centering Indigenous Voices."

This third session in our five-part webinar series covering various themes of the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials (PNAAM) is an in-depth conversation with the Tribesourcing Southwest Films Project Team: Jennifer Jenkins, PI at the University of Arizona; Melissa Dollman (Yankton Sioux descent), Project Manager and PhD student at the University of North Carolina; Rhiannon Sorrel (Dine), Instructional and Digital Services Librarian at Dine College; and Crystal Littleben (Dine), Program Coordinator at the Navajo Cultural Arts Program. The project takes mid-20th century 'educational' sponsored films about Native peoples of the U.S. Southwest back to the tribal communities represented in them, and records Native narrations and contextual information for the films. This "tribesourcing" method allows for identification of local knowledge that might otherwise be lost, as well as providing rich community-based metadata records for each film. Learn more and view on the Sustainable Heritage Network here.

"Implementing the PNAAM: Workshop Webinar #2 - Striving for Balance in Content and Perspectives."

This is the second session in a five-part webinar series covering various themes of the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials (PNAAM). This second session of the Protocols Webinar Series highlights the theme of striving for balance in content and perspective, explored through a conversation with host Jennifer R. O'Neal (University of Oregon) and Brian Carpenter (American Philosophical Society). Carpenter expands upon his recently submitted PNAAM case study highlighting the work of the American Philosophical Society to develop protocols for their Indigenous collections. View on the Sustainable Heritage Network here.

"Implementing the PNAAM: Workshop Webinar #1 - Building Relationships of Mutual Respect."

This first session of the Protocols Webinar Series highlights the theme of building relationships of mutual respect. This is explored through a conversation with host Jennifer R. O'Neal (University of Oregon) and Jonathan Pringle (University of New Mexico). Pringle expands upon his recently submitted PNAAM case study highlighting his previous work at Northern Arizona University. The webinars will also produce a usable toolkit to for use in implementing the Protocols in non-tribal repositories. Originally recorded November 2019. View on the Sustainable Heritage Network here.

Related Resources (also included in "PNAAM Resource Toolkit" shared folder linked above):