Category: Thoughts and Reflections
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Reflections on James C. Scott
In a world where the struggles of Indigenous Peoples for their land, territories, and resources persist, the works of James C. Scott, a distinguished political scientist and anthropologist, make for an interesting read. While his research isn’t exclusive to Indigenous issues, his concepts and ideas shed light on the challenges these communities face in defending…
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How Citizen-Generated Data Can Empower Indigenous Peoples: My Experience at the UNSD Expert Group Meeting
Last month, I had the opportunity to participate in a fascinating meeting organized by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) in Copenhagen. The meeting brought together experts from different fields and sectors to discuss how citizens can contribute to data production and use for public policy and SDG monitoring. This topic is very close to…
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The west fork
The West fork of the Dolores River in southwestern Colorado, is a hidden gem waiting to be explored. As a Colorado native and avid traveler, I can’t help but be captivated by the natural wonders this region has to offer. It is a place where I find solace and inspiration, a place where I can…
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Crossing a boundary – 50 UN Countries
This year, I finally crossed the 50-country mark as a world traveler! 🎉 I have seen so many amazing places, met so many wonderful people, and learned so much about myself and the world. This blog is a space for me to share my thoughts on a topic that is very important to me and…
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The Census, Data and realisation of fundamental rights
As a society, and as duty bearers who are acting to provide services and ensure implementation of rights for people around the globe, one of the biggest issues that we face is the flawed, poor quality & quantity of data which in turn leads to incomplete statistics. We quite simply have inadequate and insufficient disaggregated…
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Covid-19
The world is facing a pandemic that has disrupted our lives in unprecedented ways. At first, we heard that it was just like the Flu, and nothing much to worry about. Now we are in the unknown, but the ministry of health here in Denmark is very sure – it is a crisis. Like many…
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Research and working with Indigenous Peoples data
Researching with Indigenous communities is a complex and sensitive process that requires ethical principles and practices to ensure respect, reciprocity, and mutual benefit. Challenges and positionality As a white, cis researcher and academic working on Indigenous peoples’ rights, I am aware of the challenges and responsibilities that come with my positionality. In this blog post,…
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Working with Data
The Indigenous Navigator is an amazing initiative, a consortium of support organisations, indigenous peoples organisations, and institutional members. Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact, Tebtebba Foundation, Forest Peoples Pact, the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, the Danish Institute for Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation. Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to…
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Navigating Global Governance for Indigenous Rights
Working within IWGIA’s Global Governance team has presented a unique opportunity to influence global policies that directly impact indigenous peoples. As part of the team, I have been able to collaborate with international stakeholders, support our partners and colleagues as they advocate for indigenous representation and rights, and work towards holding duty bearers accountable to…
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Free Prior and informed consent (FPIC):
You might have heard the term FPIC floating around more and more in the last few years. It’s been gaining much-needed momentum, especially in regard to indigenous groups, their land rights, international development, and academic research. But what is it? FPIC stands for Free, Prior, and Informed Consent. It’s a concept which ensures that all…