Really interesting. Thank you for sharing that!

Those principles as such are not new, new is -to me, at least- that they are stated by the indigenous communities as such. As I tried to stick to similar principles, maybe you -or someone else- can help me with a problem: doing my research on the indigenous movement in Ecuador, I tried to contact the organizations from the very beginning - without any reaction. Now, I finished my research and have some publications - so I went for the last step: share my findings. But again: no reaction at all. They seem not to care at all. So, how do you do research in a ethical way - if the people you work on just don't care?

Thanks for your answer Philipp. Regarding the (non) reaction of indigenous people in Ecuador to your research, I think you cannot ascertain they "don't care" until they tell you so. Otherwise, you could interpret their silence in other ways. For example, maybe they think your research is ok, but do not have time to participate as they might be overwhelmed by other issues they have to deal with more urgently. Here, in North America, many aboriginal communities are small (a few hundred or a few thousand members) and thus lack the human and monetary resources to do all they would like to do. Maybe also they think your research is conducted in an exogenous fashion, and that their point of view is not welcome (even if this is a misinterpretation, as you clearly asked them for feedback). Aboriginal communities in North America are often distrustful of research undertaken by non aboriginal researchers. They have been fooled for so long that now, they simply won't trust anyone easily. This is perfectly understandable. As we say, "once burned, twice shy". One way to overcome this problem is to develop trust with people and communities (this can take some time), and then work with them from the beginning of the research process, i.e., elaborate the research question and methodology in collaboration. This way of doing things is not easy to reconcile with the imperatives of scholarly publication and requirements of funding agencies, but for me it's the best way to go.

Please refer to the online journal: Pimatisiwin for concrete example of OCAP in the field.

Maybe your research didn't matter to the group. Academic research for research sake isn't always endorsed by the Aboriginal or indigenous group in question if doesn't have any meaning for them . I am Aboriginal and I know. We don't just endorse research because you make a request. What benefit does it have for us? Did we ask you to do it?

Thank your for the suggestion, Lyle. In fact, my mayor concern is to publish something harmful for the indigenous organizations. So, if I follow your lead, it could be that I simply did not - that's what I wanted to know.

Although there seems to be general agreement that successful Aboriginal research needs to be respectful, it is not clear what exactly is meant by “respectful research.” Schnarch (2004) elaborates on the themes of Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession (OCAP), first generated by the Steering Committee of the First Nations Regional Longitudinal Health Survey, and notes how these themes reflect general notions, long advocated by Aboriginal peoples in Canada. OCAP is way to participate in an Aboriginal created environment and promotes the conduct of ethically conducted and controlled research on Aboriginal issues. Schnarch observes, although there may be a good degree of consensus, the meaning and implications of OCAP continue to evolve. The challenge is how to conduct research that respects OCAP. Because there are many ways of putting these principles into action.

Thanks a lot for your input Lyle. I totally agree with you that "the challenge is how to conduct research that respects OCAP. I posted the question so that people would send me concrete examples (published or not).