Anticolonial research? Moving beyond PAR and co-collaboration to supporting community-directed practice in the field

Speaker(s):

Hannah M B Gibbs, Extreme Citizen Science: (ExCiteS) University College London Department of Geography / Institute of Archaeology

Abstract:

Anticolonial research (an active process of change and resistance to colonial structures) does not assume access to Indigenous spaces for non-Indigenous goals. Research in fields such as anthropology, computer science, and Citizen Science actively decentres non-Indigenous perspectives. Working towards anticolonial practice requires acknowledging the impact of colonial legacies, reflexivity, positionality, and an awareness of power dynamics.

Token community involvement can be used to create the impression of social inclusiveness and diversity. Anticolonial research has the potential to create change. This workshop will explore what is anticolonial research? Following feedback from people involved in community-directed research, we will discuss how moving beyond Participatory Action Research (PAR) and co-collaboration can support research initiated, directed, and controlled by Indigenous or local communities, which protects the autonomy of those involved, who make decisions on their anonymity, involvement, research questions explored, research methods used, and how and where data is shared, and findings are presented.