scholarly journals Indigenous Adoption of Internet Voting: A Case Study of Whitefish River First Nation

Author(s):  
Chelsea Gabel ◽  
Nicole Goodman ◽  
Karen Bird ◽  
Brian Budd

Indigenous communities and organizations are increasingly using digital technologies to build community capacity, strengthen community consultation, and improve political participation. In particular, Internet voting is a type of technology to which First Nations have been drawn. This article explores Whitefish River First Nation's (WRFN) experience introducing Internet voting in the course of ratifying a new matrimonial real property law (MRP). Specifically, we examine the implications of Internet voting for political participation and electoral administration at the community level. Although community members’ uptake of Internet voting was very modest, we find the experience of adoption had other subtle impacts on community capacity, specifically in terms of empowering the community to pass its own laws and connecting youth and elders. With respect to administration, Internet voting provided an opportunity to connect with community members using technology, to modernize voting processes, and to better accommodate community members needs.

Author(s):  
David Nathan

This case study outlines the development of one component of the interactive multimedia CD-ROM Paakantyi (Hercus & Nathan, 2002), emphasising the value of community consultation throughout the project lifespan.1 In our initial consultations with members of the Paakantyi community of NSW, Australia, about producing a CD-ROM to support their new language revival efforts, community members put forward the idea of a “talking dictionary.” The value that many aboriginal people place on dictionaries as symbols of a language’s significance is well-known, and, particularly following the publication of the (text-only) Kamilaroi/Gamilaraay Web Dictionary (Austin & Nathan, 1996), we had heard many people in many places express a preference to simply hear the words.


Author(s):  
Tish Scott

This qualitative case study focuses on community members’ observations and perceptions of student multimedia technology projects produced in a grade 6/7 class, particularly in relation to what they affirm is important for their children’s education. The projects are community-based and rooted in the First Nations culture of a remote village in northern British Columbia (Canada).


Author(s):  
Karen Bouchard ◽  
Adam Perry ◽  
Shannon West-Johnson ◽  
Thierry Rodon ◽  
Michelle Vanchu-Orosco

Abstract Modern Treaties are presented as a means for improving the lives of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in Canada by providing specific rights, and negotiated benefits. However, the positive impacts of Modern Treaties on Indigenous well-being are contested (Borrows and Coyle 2017; Coulthard 2014; Guimond et al. 2013; Miller 2009; Poelzer and Coates 2015). Developing a more transparent, consistent, collaborative and contextual way of measuring well-being relevant to the cultural realities of Modern Treaty beneficiaries is an important step for generating comparative methods that could systematically demonstrate whether, and under what conditions, such agreements can effectively reduce socio-economic disparities and improve the quality of life of Indigenous communities. The authors first examine previous attempts at measuring Indigenous well-being, then reflect on well-being in relation to the Modern Treaty context. Subsequently, the authors provide an example from one Self-Governing Indigenous Government, the Nisga’a Lisims Government, to collect well-being data through the Nisga’a Nation Household Survey using a mixed quantitative-qualitative method developed through a culturally grounded and participatory approach.


Author(s):  
Rob McMahon ◽  
Tim Whiteduck ◽  
Arline Chasle ◽  
Shelley Chief ◽  
Leonard Polson ◽  
...  

Community-engaged digital literacies initiatives can greatly benefit from knowledge and practices developed by Indigenous peoples. In this paper, we describe a research project to develop digital literacies with two Algonquin First Nations in Quebec: Timiskaming and Long Point. This project reflects a First Mile approach to Community Informatics, informed by the theoretical framework of Indigenous resurgence and by engaged research methodologies. In telecommunications and broadband terminology, communities are typically framed as the ‘last mile’ of development. The First Mile approach challenges this situation by encouraging projects that emerge from the locally determined needs of collaborating communities, who gain ownership and control of processes and outcomes. Drawing on community-engaged research methodologies, university-based researchers facilitate this work while community-based researchers integrate data collection, analysis, and public outreach activities into the lived realities of community members. We discuss how digital literacies projects can benefit from the theoretical framework of Indigenous resurgence, which stresses the daily practices that support the continual renewal of Indigenous communities.


2010 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 749-758 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wyona M Freysteinson

This article describes a case study in which community consultation was used to assist in the preparation of a research project on viewing self in the mirror after mastectomy. Breast cancer survivors, nurses, and other health care professionals were consulted using a variety of interactive modalities. Over a period of three months, pre-research planning information was obtained from participants. A descriptive qualitative design was used to analyze the data. The ethical goals of community consultation provided the framework for dialogue and the synthesis of information. During this project, the potential benefits of the proposed research study were explored. Possible risks to future participants were discussed, and recommendations for participant protection suggested. Community members provided insight into the legitimacy of the study. Community consultation is a tool that researchers may consider when designing studies.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 177
Author(s):  
Roopa Rakshit ◽  
Chander Shahi ◽  
M. A. (Peggy) Smith ◽  
Adam Cornwell

<p><em>Ontario’s 2017 Long-Term Energy Plan has identified the </em><em>Wataynikaneyap Power transmission line </em><em>as a priority project.</em><em> </em><em>The line will connect seventeen remote, off-grid, diesel-dependent First Nation</em><em> </em><em>communitiesin </em><em>northwestern Ontario, Canada to the provincial grid</em><em>. The province’s </em><em>current energy mandates and policies commit program dollars to build the human capacities o</em><em>f the seventeen</em><em> </em><em>Wataynikaneyap Power communities </em><em>through the </em><em>Remote Electrification Readiness Program (RERP)</em><em>. This effort is part of growing interests, changing perspectives, and focus in the continuum of provincial strategies to encourage First Nations to meet their emerging energy transitional needs and to partake in the energy sector.</em></p><p><em>Capacity-building challenges are unique in</em><em> </em><em>the</em><em> </em><em>Wataynikaneyap Power communities because</em><em> </em><em>they experience higher levels of poverty and</em><em> </em><em>socio</em><em> </em><em>economic inequities, are subjected to antiquated and unjust institutional structures, are following a legal and self-governance status, and are maintaining distinct cultures and ways of life.</em></p><p><em>Capacity building as a concept is wide-ranging</em><em> </em><em>and offers</em><em> </em><em>a multitude of expressions</em><em> </em><em>and interpretations. For </em><em>the </em><em>Wataynikaneyap Power communities</em><em>, capacity building</em><em> has offered the opportunity</em><em> </em><em>to exert their inherent rights and to increase their participation in local and regional energy planning and development.</em></p><em>This community-based research is derived from grassroots ethnographic community observation. Through a case study of one of the Wataynikaneyap Power communities, Poplar Hill First Nation, the paper will: a) elucidate a working example of an Indigenous capacity-building process through the RERP; b) demonstrate that capacity development is a key building block for self-determination and to achieve energy sovereignty; and c) illustrate the broader scope of learnings and pathways to effective capacity building for Indigenous communities that will drive energy development initiatives and actions in Canada’s expansive energy sector.</em>


2006 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gayle Broad ◽  
Stephanie Boyer ◽  
Cynthia Chataway

Abstract: This case study was conducted by researchers engaged in “Understanding the Strengths of Indigenous Communities,” a research project involving five participating First Nations (see http://www.usic.ca). This particular study describes the centrality of cultural activities and beliefs in strengthening the community of the Batchewana First Nation. Deploying an innovative form of methodology, which stresses community participation in the development of the research process for the purposes of decolonization, the article explores how this community approaches culture from a holistic worldview. The findings suggest that cultural renewal is self-reinforcing and cumulative, and plays a key role in overcoming collective trauma, but that these benefits can be jeopardized through a lack of resources. Résumé : Cette étude, intitulée “Understanding the Strengths of Indigenous Communities,” a été menée par des recherchistes associés à un projet regroupant cinq nations autochtones. Elle décrit le rôle primordial des activités culturelles et des croyances dans le mécanisme de consolidation de la communauté Batchewana First Nation. Utilisant une méthodologie innovatrice qui attire l’attention sur la participation communautaire dans l’élaboration d’un processus de recherche ayant comme but la décolonisation, ce communiqué explore les points de vue holistiques utilisés par cette communauté. Les résultats suggèrent que le renouveau culturel est autodéterminant et cumulatif et qu’il joue un rôle clé dans la confrontation du traumatisme collectif, mais que ces bienfaits peuvent êtres mis en danger par un manque de ressources.


2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenda McCarthy ◽  
Christine Rogers Stanton

Curricular counter-narratives can affirm the experiences of marginalized youth, but, given their complexity and unfamiliarity, they can also generate discord between community members.  This case study analyzes documents, observations, and interviews to explore ways an Indigenous counter-narrative can create space for multicultural education within a Montana school district.  The findings demonstrate both positive and negative community responses to the focus novel, the importance of teaching about context and multiple perspectives, and the potential for student agency and social action.  The results also provide cautionary notes about the complexity of critical pedagogy and the importance of community consultation.


Author(s):  
Tariq Zaman

As personal and collective community development becomes increasingly inseparable from interactions with information and communication technologies (ICTs), new constructs representing this relationship need to be explored. In Malaysian Borneo, many indigenous communities are connected to the internet and using ICTs for socio-economic development. This research presents a case study of ICTs use by an indigenous community and inquires if ICTs can address the challenges and open up new opportunities in contemporary life. By using a qualitative approach, the author interviewed 15 participants to understand the use of ICTs to achieve their personal and community's gratifications. This paper highlighted that the community members consider ICTs an important part of their contemporary life. Nevertheless, before making any decision on ICT-related projects, they perform a reflexive examination on the possible impacts of the technology and project. This research also discussed the unanticipated benefits and the negative outcomes of the new technologies on the routine life of the Long Lamai community.


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