Holding the Line: Maintaining Indigenous Sovereignty and Authority in International Research Collaborations

Abstract

This article calls to attention the possibilities and problematics of upholding Indigenous ethics and approaches in cross-cultural international research collaborations. We describe the opportunities and challenges that present themselves and elaborate on four lessons learned during a recent education project, including (1) how the authority and mana of Indigenous stakeholders can be maintained, (2) how to ensure Indigenous concepts and worldviews are honoured, (3) how to decolonize western academic expectations about open data-sharing, and (4) how and why Indigenous rituals of encounter must be established to ensure cultural safety. Using Moana Jackson’s (2016) ten Māori research ethics, this paper identifies and examines what needs to be upheld, interrogated and refused when working in cross-cultural international research collaborations. We conclude with recommendations for collaborators, including the importance of embedding regular opportunities for collective reflexivity, as a means of rebalancing or refusing the uneven power relations that affect genuine partnership.