Research Data Management
Guiding Principles
OCAP Principles
The following is quoted from First Nations Information Governance Centre (2014) "Ownership, Control, Access and Possession (OCAP™): The Path to First Nations Information Governance" pg. 4-5.
Ownership
The notion of ownership refers to the relationship of a First Nations community to its cultural knowledge/ data/ information. The principle states that a community or group owns information collectively in the same way that an individual owns their personal information. Ownership is distinct from stewardship. The stewardship or custodianship of data or information by an institution that is accountable to the group is a mechanism through which ownership may be maintained.
Control
The aspirations and inherent rights of First Nations to maintain and regain control of all aspects of their lives and institutions extend to information and data. The principle of ‘control’ asserts that First Nations people, their communities and representative bodies must control how information about them is collected, used and disclosed. The element of control extends to all aspects of information management, from collection of data to the use, disclosure and ultimate destruction of data.
Access
First Nations must have access to information and data about themselves and their communities, regardless of where it is held. The principle also refers to the right of First Nations communities and organizations to manage and make decisions regarding who can access their collective information.
Possession
While ‘ownership’ identifies the relationship between a people and their data, possession reflects the state of stewardship of data. First Nation possession puts data within First Nation jurisdiction and therefore, within First Nation control. Possession is the mechanism to assert and protect ownership and control. First Nations generally exercise little or no control over data that is in the possession of others, particularly other governments.
CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance
The following is quoted from the Research Data Alliance International Indigenous Data Sovereignty Interest Group, (September 2019), “CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance,” The Global Indigenous Data Alliance, GIDA-global.org.
Collective Benefit
Data ecosystems shall be designed and function in ways that enable Indigenous Peoples to derive benefit from the data for inclusive development and innovation, improved governance and citizen engagement, and equitable outcomes.
Authority to Control
Indigenous Peoples’ rights and interests in Indigenous data must be recognised and their authority to control such data be empowered. Indigenous data governance enables Indigenous Peoples and governing bodies to determine how Indigenous Peoples, as well as Indigenous lands, territories, resources, knowledges and geographical indicators, are represented and identified within data.
Responsibility
Those working with Indigenous data have a responsibility to share how those data are used to support Indigenous Peoples’ self-determination and collective benefit. Accountability requires meaningful and openly available evidence of these efforts and the benefits accruing to Indigenous Peoples.
Ethics
Indigenous Peoples’ rights and wellbeing should be the primary concern at all stages of the data life cycle and across the data ecosystem.
Indigenous Data Sovereignty
Resources for Indigenous Data Sovereignty
- The First Nations Principles of OCAP® Course
“Fundamentals of OCAP®” is a new online training course developed by the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) in partnership with Algonquin College.
Cost: $249 (plus GST/HST).
Registration required. Algonquin College Corporate Training processes all registrations for the course on the 20th of each month. This means if you want to start the course in June, your deadline to register is May 20th.
- Ownership, Control, Access and Possession (OCAP™): The Path to First Nations Information GovernanceThe First Nations Information Governance Committee published its first paper on OCAP™ in 2002. Since that time OCAP™ has become ubiquitous. It is the de facto standard for conducting research on First Nations, and has grown beyond research to include the governance of all First Nations information. OCAP™ has been successfully applied in communities across Canada, as communities are increasingly asserting jurisdiction over their own data. Yet there are also many myths and barriers associated with OCAP™. One of the positive by-products of this has been the trademarking of OCAP™ through The First Nations Information Governance Centre. This paper will update the 2002 paper, reviewing the origins and rationale for OCAP™, looking at some successful case studies, and considering where OCAP™ goes from here.
- Barriers and Levers for the Implementation of OCAP™This article discusses the obstacles to and supports for the implementation of the First Nations Principles of OCAP™, specifically in the context of data holdings within Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC) and the Government of Canada. It cites three types of barriers (legal, knowledge and capacity, and institutional) that obstruct OCAP™ and examines how federal legislation such as the Privacy Act and Access to Information Act undermine these First Nations Principles. It continues by exploring supports available to help operationalize OCAP™, including legal, policy, knowledge and capacity-based levers. It concludes by outlining how ANNDC’s increased knowledge about OCAP™ could help support capacity building in First Nations communities.
- Global Indigenous Data Allience (GIDA): Be FAIR and CARE
Principles for Indigenous data governance. - Memorial University's Research FAQs for Indigenous groups, governments, and NationsA living document, some contents of which is only relevant to Memorial University. Includes responses to important questions including:
- How do I approach a researcher we might be interested in engaging?
- How do we deal with our ownership, access, and control of data?
- How do we hold our own grants?
- What do we do if a researcher is not following protocols? - Memorial University's For researchers: Doing Indigenous research in a good wayA living document containing general recommendations relevant to all researchers and with some information specific to Memorial University.
- Equity for Indigenous Research & Innovation Coordinating Hub (ENRICH)"ENRICH centers Indigenous rights to develop, control and govern Indigenous data [and] responds to the challenges of accelerated production and use of data across government, scientific and innovation platforms which can exacerbate the appropriation of Indigenous knowledge and the alienation of Indigenous Peoples from digitally enabled future. Remembering the past and integrating Indigenous wisdom into our institutional structures creates space for Indigenous communities to become integral members of our global shared future." Learn about ENRICH's Traditional Knowledge Labels, Notices, and more.
