We are pleased to share that Local Contexts and ORCID have embarked on a cooperation agreement to foster the adoption of the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance, Local Contexts Labels and Notices and ORCID identifiers throughout the research data lifecycle.
The agreement, in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), formalizes the mutual interaction and strengthens the existing relationship between the Local Contexts and ORCID at an operational level, focusing on building awareness of and encouraging researchers to register for and use their ORCID iD throughout the research data lifecycle, as well as to adopt the CARE principles and appropriate use of Local Contexts Labels and Notices.
As part of the cooperation between the two organizations, ORCID has become a Founding Supporter of Local Contexts, and Local Contexts has joined ORCID as a member organization. In coming months, Local Contexts and ORCID will be working to integrate the Local Contexts Hub with the ORCID registry, supporting the mutual linking of accounts for users of the two systems.
ORCID is an open and interdisciplinary community-based effort to provide a Registry of Persistent Identifiers for all kinds of researchers, and tools for embedding these identifiers into research systems and workflows of research organizations, publishers and funders.
The mission of Local Contexts is to offer practical digital tools and frameworks, such as Labels and Notices, for Indigenous communities, cultural institutions, and researchers. Together with the Local Contexts Hub, these digital marks serve as essential tools to advance Indigenous data sovereignty and foster innovation. The primary objectives of Local Contexts are to support Indigenous decision-making and governance frameworks. These frameworks determine ownership, access, and culturally appropriate conditions for sharing cultural heritage and Indigenous data across historical, contemporary, and future contexts.
Stephany Runninghawk Johnson, Founding Executive Director of Local Contexts said:
“At Local Contexts we believe that Indigenous communities should be connected with their data. Working with ORCID to give researchers greater access to make and maintain those connections is really exciting and an opportunity to amplify Indigenous voices.“
Chris Shillum, Executive Director of ORCID said:
“One of ORCID’s three values is Inclusivity, so we are delighted to be working with Local Contexts to help researchers demonstrate that they respect the CARE Principles and support the rights of Indigenous Peoples to exert greater control over Indigenous data and and Indigenous Knowledge. “
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We acknowledge that ORCID is a US-based nonprofit organization incorporated in Bethesda, Maryland on the ancestral lands of the Piscataway people, the original stewards of this territory, and we recognize the ongoing legacy of their presence and culture in this region.
However, as an organization with staff and a community that spans across geographic and national boundaries, ORCID acknowledges that many of the lands and waters we occupy are Indigenous Homelands. We recognize the ongoing significance of these lands and waters for Indigenous Peoples in the past, present, and future.
