iSchool Capstone

The Application of Indigenous Knowledge to Decolonize Non-Native Cultural Museum Collections

Project tags:

community engagement & outreach

indigenous knowledge

knowledge organization

Social Impact and Social Justice Award

To provide better representation of Korean culture and heritage, I completed a collections assessment of 336 items in the Burke Museum of Natual History & Culture’s Korean Collections. A majority of the donors are White and come from academic or war-related backgrounds, making these Western-curated and developed collections. Through reparative description, community engagement, and utilization of Indigenous knowledge, I have updated and enhanced previous item records adding context and community notes for future students and researchers. Furthermore, I have also conducted international repatriation efforts to return culturally sensitive items back to Korea through this project.

Project participants:

Maile Chung

MLIS