“Since Donald Trump entered office, Liboiron has put those rapid-response skills to use to support their US colleagues in need. US federal law recognizes many tribal nations as sovereign political entities, not racial or ethnic groups, but that hasn’t stopped Trump from sweeping up Indigenous peoples in his attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). From Alaska to New England, Indigenous researchers — and the communities they serve — are losing access to dollars for critical science that could help them amid the planet’s changing temperatures. They’re worried that the loss, theft, seizure, or privatization of their research — which often includes ancient cultural knowledge — could be next.
After all, the US and Canada hold a nasty track record on Indigenous rights from centuries of theft, genocide, and ongoing oppression: “That starts in 1492,” Liboiron said. Indigenous communities are now concerned that the government may weaponize their data against them, using it to justify the surveillance of their activities or extraction of valuable resources on their lands.”
“Through the IndigeLab Network Liboiron codirects, members have already identified at least three locations in Canada where Indigenous data can be securely stored. While the researchers finalize access to new servers, they have turned to cloud storage, using providers like CryptPad, a France-based alternative to Google Docs, and Sync, a Canadian-based alternative to Dropbox.”