indigenous knowledge centre

In a special collaboration with the Indigenous Knowledge Guardians (IKG) of the Six Nations community and McMaster University, Six Nations Polytechnic is developing the Indigenous Knowledge Centre (IKC). Over the last three years, the IKC Steering Committee and the IKG, along with other advisors, have researched the potential for such a centre to help consolidate cultural history information that will benefit Indigenous communities and increase the state of Indigenous scholarship.

Our terms of reference can be found here.

The overall strategy and scope of the Indigenous Knowledge Centre is available here for you to read.

The scope of the IKC will be far reaching. However, the most urgent focus has been on local language preservation and revitalization. As such, the IKC has assisted in the development of an Indigenous language immersion school plan, Immersion School Planning, as well as the Ogwehoweh Language Diploma Program, which was successfully launched in the fall of 2009 at Six Nations Polytechnic.

In addition, the IKC has been involved in repatriating archival language materials back to the community. In the nineteenth century, Tuscarora scholar J. N. B. Hewitt of the American Bureau of Ethnology conducted extensive research at Six Nations collecting oral history, old stories, traditional names, ceremonies and materials on the Great Law of Peace and the operation of the Confederacy. His field notes and research manuscripts remained in Washington, DC for over 100 years, seen by only a few people from our community.

Now, with the dedication of Indigenous studies scholar Dr. Dawn Martin-Hill and others, the archival documents have been copied and are now being reinterpreted by the Indigenous Knowledge Guardians. This will assure that the information collected over a century ago will have an impact on the future state of the culture at Six Nations.

Our statement to the cultural underpinnings of the IKC, titled Five Branches of Hodinohso:ni/Rotinonhsyonni Philosophy, and a summary of Potential Scope of Projects describe what the IKC will attempt to achieve. We are seeking a way in which to operate an educational agency that is deeply rooted in, and reflective of, the Indigenous values and educational strategies that enhance our perception of the culture. It is not a place to study culture, but rather, it will be a place that surrounds knowledge with an Indigenous context.

We have made available here, our working paper on Hodinohso:ni/Rotinonhsyonni Intellectual Rights and Responsibilities. It is difficult to arrive at a statement that protects our knowledge from exploitation, yet still allows our knowledge to reveal its wisdom to all who are interested. We do not view knowledge as “property”. Instead, it is a sacred trust that we hold. However, we hold it not to suffocate it, but to let it flourish in the hearts and minds of those who want to walk the path of life set out by the ancestors. This can best be seen in our statement of The Sequence of Knowledge Transmission, which provides a cultural context for what we consider to be the core of our teaching.

The documents referred to above were developed by Richard Hill, Program Developer for the IKC, and are intended to stimulate our thinking about what the IKC can accomplish. These are living documents as they will change through time as work with the IKC Steering Committee and Indigenous Knowledge Guardians continues to develop and implement these programs.

Come back and visit the IKC website to see what progress we have made.

IKC Steering Committee Members
Bonnie Freeman
Daniel Coleman
Dawn Martin-Hill
Dr. Karen Hill
Ima Johnson
Linda Staats
Lottie Keye
Rebecca Jamieson
Rick Hill
Rick Monture
Tracy Deer
Will Coleman