PURPOSE
The purpose of creating a Whānau Digital Catalogue was to meet the requirements of a Masterate in Museum Studies through the process of an Advanced Research Practicum (ARP) project.
PROJECT OUTLINE
The sets of archival material selected for this project were identified from the overall collection in a series of whānau wānanga held in partnership with Te Pūte Routiriata o Taranaki, the archive arm of Te Reo o Taranaki in 2017. Whānau were interested in developing a kaupapa Māori, whānau-led collection management methodology. It is important to note that the number of items in each set as described below could varyas the cataloging process evolves. There is the potential that even the names and the descriptions of the sets could change. The initial naming of the current sets aims to be consistent with the nomenclature of sets described in the cataloging of the Pei te Hurinui Jones collection (Anderson, 2014). The intended number of items to be catalogued will be two hundred and fifty. However this process is expected tobecome one of constant refinement. Therefore, over the time of the project, progressively more information about the content will be obtained (Ashenfelder, 2016).
SELECTED SETS DESCRIPTION
- Te Reo revitalisation strategies and initiatives
- Treaty of Waitangi
- Human Rights and other research materials
- Taonga
- Conference material
- Manuscripts
- Educational Resources
- Photographs
- Oral history recordings
- Board and legislative papers
PROJECT AIMS
The primary aim is to digitally catalogue two hundred and fifty items from the Personal Collection of Dr Waikerepuru. This would represent a small sample of 30 years research and te reo revitalisation work. The full scope of Waikerepuru's collection ( in Māori and English) is as yet unknown. However, the collection spans personal and professional worlds and many geographical locales. It includes a vast range of kaupapa. There are items in the collection in need of conservation and/or preservation action. digitisation is required for many items facing obsolescence.
There are a number of secondary aims. The Candidate's contextualised work on the proposed project, interactions between the Academic Supervisor, Subject Mentor/Specialist and the Candidate will provide further information in the development of:
- An inventory of, and collection management plan for the entire personal archival collection of Te Huirangi Waikerepuru, which also includes archival material currently in the care of the wider Waikerepuru whānau.
- An inventory of, and collection management plan for, the archival collection (as yet untapped in regard to Te Huirangi Waikerepuru) in the care of Te Reo o Taranaki.
- An inventory of Waikerepuru's archives in libraries, archives and museums, and with individuals outside the whānau.
- A centralised database for ongoing collection and metadata management.
This further information will be recorded as it occurs in the Advanced Research Practicum Journal. It will be analysed to include a synthesis in the the final report.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Twenty-five items will be selected from each set contained in the main collection. Items will be inventorised and then digitally catalogued to archival and museum standard using culturally appropriate processes and the Significant 2.0 Framework principles.
The primary aim of the research methodology will be to fully catalogue to an archives and/or museum collections standard using culturally appropriate processes and incorporating Significance 2.0 Framework principles (Russell & Winkwork, 2009). The cataloguing process will include:
- Medium
- Size
- Provenance
- Dates, names, location
- The importance of the item/object
- Relationships and narratives associated with the item
- Any other factor that is pertinent to the item/object that arises as a result of the cataloguing process, with special emphasis on Tikanga Māori
- An evaluation of the suitability of existing digital platforms will be completed to determine which one will be used for the research project. The following digital platforms possess characteristics that could be acceptable
DIGITAL PLATFORMS
The Mukurtu method of digitally cataloging native people's collections is culturally appropriate for Māori. It aims to empower communities to manage, share and exchange their digital heritage in culturally relevant and ethically-minded ways (Mukurtu, 2018). Mukurtu processes for Māori mean that the provision of context when creating a record is powerful. This is considered to be a factor requiring additional time to be allocated for the cataloging process.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Digital Archive (ATSIDA) is a "specialised research data management facility for Australian Indigenous research data" (Anderson, 2012, p.66). ATSIDA demonstrates its integrity and fidelity by expressing its alignment with the World Intellectual Property Organisation's Committee. ATSIDA has a feature that is common to many digital archive platforms. It provides different access conditions, ie no access, low, medium and high levels of access. ATSIDA employs a Reference Group that will determine if access will be permitted when a request for access has been made and the depositor is not available to respond to the data request within six weeks. It can be argued that for Māori this type of access may not be culturally appropriate for safe-guarding Mātauranga Māori. Whānau would want better reassurances than appear to be currently available on ATSIDA to enable whānau control over the deposits.
The New Zealand Electronic Text Centre is based at Victoria University, Wellington. Amongst the collections it contains catalogued information regarding Māori. The database respected "that the digitisation of certain images of tīpuna should not be undertaken" (Anderson, 2014, p.71). This was determined through a consultation process with Māori. On initial examination it is considered that for the proposed research project inclusion on this platfor could involve a lengthy consultation process which would not be suitable for the short time frame of this project.
ETHICAL IMPLICATION OF DIGITISING MĀORI MATERIAL
The literature appears to offer sparse guidance in considering the ethical implications of digitising Mātauranga Māori. Kaupapa Māori techniques for ethical digitisation remain in a state of development. However promising suggestions (whilst limited in scope) have been made in the document, The Future of Rongoā Māori: Wellbeing and Sustainability, A Report for Te Kete Hauora (2008). In addition, recommendations were also made in the 2004 document He Matatika Māori: Māori and Ethical Review in Health Research (Anderson, 2012).
The digitisation of the Pei te Hurinui Jones Collection conceptualised a model of digitisation by selecting as guiding principles eight (8) of Linda Tuhiwai Smith's twenty-five projects (Anderson, 2012). Seven (7) Māori cultural values were also employed in the digitisation of the collection. Different Iwi conceptualise cultural values in their own way, for example Ngāti Raukawa articulate their nine (9) Pou as guiding principles (Te Wānanga o Raukawa, 2018). Most significantly it needs to be noted that in the instance of the Pei te Hurinui Jones Collection "the research also presents a model of digitisation based on Tainui traditions" (Anderson, 2012, p.144). The proposed research project needs to examine most carefully the Taranaki cultural principles that need to be reflected in the digitisation process.
Digitisation can open access for precious Māori taonga to the world and the use of Taranaki cultural beliefs would be set in start contrast to the digital world globally. New Zealand māori Tourism's deputy-chair Dan Walker has research findings which have uncovered the "complete lack of values" of that global digital world (Rasch, 2018, p.26). In addition this research project is support of Walker's call that "Māori could be the first culture in the world to formally define a values framework based on its tikanga for the digital world" (Rasch, 2018, p.26). Walker's research willbe further explored in the Literature Search section of the proposed research project. His research will be of special interest and relevance as he may already have viewed it through the same lens as Te Huirangi Waikerepuru may have used. Walker and Waikerepuru have similar whakapapa (Ngāti Ruanui and Tangahoe).
In regards to the Pei Te Hurinui Jones Collection, and taking all the research completed above into account, Anderson's suggestion that "there will be considerable value in testing the proposed model of digitisation to other collections, to evaluate its potential and to inform digital processes and procedures" (Anderson, 2014, p.145) appears well-founded for this proposed research project.
ACTION RESEARCH
An action research process will be employed for the secondary aims. An example from Education regarding action research states that it is "iterative, experiential, content specific and developmental. Action research emphasises change and transformation along with evidence, or data-based decision making, encourages reflection and narrows the theory-practice gap," (New Zealand Council for Educational Research, 2018). The Council states that "flexibility is also possible if the potential for spin-offs" are expected to originate from the cataloging process to inform and develop the secondary aims. The Journal entries will document this.
The field of Environmental Management shows that Action Research is readily compatible with Māori values as the research is "a practitioner, an interventionist" (Allen, 2001, p.26). It is able to include learning and information from a range of intervention and research methods from a number of fields. Action research takes a constructive perspective which helps people to express their values. This type of research is designed to deal with and respond to the real world (Allen, 2001).
In the Health Sector "Action Research can be a powerful tool for change and improvement in health services for indigenous people when utilised within an appropriate framework. The project Māori Utilisation & Experience of Ischaemic Heart Disease Management illustrates this convergence in its use of Kaupapa Māori Action Research methods in its efforts to improve the health and well-being of Māori" (Kerr et al, 2010).
PROJECT OUTCOMES
A catalogue of 250 items from the personal archive of Dr Waikerepuru will be constructed. This will have been achieved through this project's development within a Māori worldview, with underlying frameworks and approaches which lend themselves to traditional information structures.
REFERENCES
Allen, W.J. (2000). Working together for environmental management: The role of information sharing and collaborative learning [Unpublished Doctoral dissertation]. Retrieved from https://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/3879
Anderson, M. (2012). An exploration of the ethical implications of the digitisation and dissemination of Mātauranga Māori: With special reference to the Pei te Hurinui Jones Collection [Unpublished Masters Thesis]. Retrieved from https://waikato.researchgateway.ac.nz/handle/10289/8733
Ashenfelder, M. (2016, May 11). Your personal archiving project: Where do you start? [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://blogs.loc.gov/thesignal/2016/05/how-to-begin-a-personal-archiving-project/
Kerr, S., Penney, L., Moewaka-Barnes, H., & McCreanor, T. (2009). Kaupapa Māori Action Research to improve heart disease services in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Journal Ethnicity & Health, 15(1), 15-31, https://doi: 10.1080/13557850903374476
Mukurtu.(n.d.). Retrieved from http://mukurtu.org/
New Zealand Council for Educational Research.(n.d.). Retrieved from www.nzcer.org.nz/NZcerpress/action-rsearch-practice
Rasch, R. (2018). Young leader looks to increase Māori participation in digital sector. Massey Periodical. April 2018.
Russell, R., & Winkworth, K. (2009). Significance: A guide to assessing the significance of collections. Adelaide, Australia: Collections Council of Australia.
Te Wānanga o Raukawa.(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.wananga.com/ng-kaupapa.html
Tzibazi, V. (2013). Participatory Action Research with young people in museums. Museum Management and Curatorship Vol 28,(2), 2013.
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