A4: Data Sovereignty, Mapping and Indigenous Technologies
Tracks
4
| Sunday, November 29, 2026 |
| 1:00 PM - 2:15 PM |
| RHMZ01 |
Overview
Stream: Digital, Immersive and Data Heritage
Paper / Session Submitter
Darienne Dey
Doctoral Candidate
Marywood University
He Ala Hoʻokele, He Ala Alakaʻi: Wayfinding, Data Sovereignty, and Relational Heritage in Hawaiʻi
Summary Abstract
This paper examines Indigenous wayfinding not only as a navigational practice but as a relational heritage system integrating knowledge, leadership, ethics, and responsibility to land and ocean. Drawing on 19th- and early 20th-century Hawaiian-language sources, it reconstructs classical Hawaiian wayfinding education as a structured pedagogy through which ʻike (knowledge), kuleana (responsibility), and alakaʻi (leadership) were transmitted together. I argue that wayfinding functioned as a governance framework organizing relationships among people, environment, and time. Building from this history, the paper connects these principles to contemporary Indigenous data sovereignty through community-centered mapping, environmental monitoring, and a “Virtual Wayfinder” decision-support tool. By framing data as relational inheritances rather than extractive resources, this work positions Indigenous data governance as living heritage linking past, present, and future across Oceania.
Biographies
Darienne Dey is a kanaka ʻōiwi (Native Hawaiian) PhD candidate in Strategic Leadership and Administrative Studies at Marywood University. Her research reconstructs classical Hawaiian wayfinding as a system of leadership and learning. Her additional research interests connect Indigenous knowledge systems with data sovereignty, geospatial tools, and community-based environmental stewardship across Oceania.
Dr Monika Stobiecka
Assistant Professor
University Of Warsaw
Against Digital Universalism: Artistic interventions, copyrighting heritage and the case of The Other Nefertiti
Summary Abstract
This presentation examines The Other Nefertiti as an artistic intervention that critically challenges digital universalism in contemporary heritage practices. Digital universalism promotes digitisation as neutral, open, and universally accessible, while in fact reinforcing asymmetries of power, ownership, and control through legal and technological infrastructures. By releasing an illicit 3D scan of the Nefertiti bust and making it freely available online, the artists - Nora Al-Badri and Jan Nikolai Nelles - contest institutional copyright claims and expose the politics embedded in digital heritage regimes. The project reclaims digitisation as a relational, activist practice, foregrounding access, participation, and social agency, and proposing an alternative model of heritage beyond proprietary and universalist digital frameworks.
Biographies
Monika Stobiecka, PhD is an art historian and archaeologist, an assistant professor at the Faculty of Liberal Arts, University of Warsaw. A member of the Young Scholars Academy of the Polish Academy of Sciences. A fellow of the Lanckoroński from Brzeź Foundation (2016), the Kościuszko Foundation (2018), the Foundation for Polish Science (2019). A cofounder of the Central and East Europe Chapter of Association of Critical Heritage Studies. Her research interests include political and ethical dimensions of heritage, digital heritage, archaeological museum studies and the intersection of contemporary art and archaeological theory.
Dr Rowena Butland
Lecturer In Social Sciences
Western Sydney University
We lost it. Now what? Virtual Heritage as Potential Substitute for ‘Real-World’ Heritage
Summary Abstract
Whilst consciousness of the precarity of sites and objects often enhances the sense of significance surrounding heritage, two dystopic scenarios endanger heritage and our relationship with it: physical destruction due to anthropogenic environmental change; and alienation from sites of cultural significance (resulting from conflict or travel restrictions). Potential loss of real-world experiences of heritage necessitate the exploration of alternative, or parallel, experiences. Virtual heritage is the mirroring, or digital reproduction) of a real-world heritage place, primarily through a virtual environment or other immersive digital experience. Such virtual environments offer the opportunity to facilitate digital links between past, present and future. However, the ability of virtual heritage to enable comparative relationships between people and place, or a sense of cultural significance, remains unexplored. This research interrogates the potential for Virtual Heritage to be more than immersive museums, and its potential to be (re)produce and (re)placement of lost and fading heritage places.
Biographies
Rowena is a multidisciplinary researcher, with in the social sciences. Her heritage-related research explores multi-modal capturing of multi-sensory spatial data about heritage places. Her current research explores interests are situated in a dystopic future where virtual heritage must substitute for physical experiences of place.
Mr Chi Liu
PhD Candidate
University Of Melbourne
Olkola Interactive Maps: Olkola-led Processes and Digital Technologies for Collecting and Sharing Olkola Cultural Heritage
Summary Abstract
This Indigenous-led project partners with the Olkola Aboriginal Corporation to respond to Olkola digital cultural heritage needs and aspirations. It aims to support the Olkola People of central Cape York, Australia, to collect and share Olkola cultural stories through the co-design of interactive digital maps. The project examines and develops emerging digital technologies, including audio-visual recording, 4D scanning, digital mapping, and extended reality (XR), through the lenses of community-based appropriate technology, Indigenous data sovereignty, and Olkola relational, cultural, and experiential perspectives. It also observes, documents and analyses Olkola engagement processes, identifying key Olkola knowledge holders, capabilities, interactions, and cultural protocols that shape Olkola cultural heritage practices. The project contributes practically to Olkola digital cultural heritage development, strengthening identity and pride. It also advances critical heritage studies theoretically, technologically, and methodologically. The project’s insights have broader relevance for future Indigenous digital heritage management, supporting other Indigenous communities globally with similar aspirations.
Biographies
Chi Liu is a PhD candidate at Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne. He is specialised in digital cultural heritage and participatory design. His PhD supports Olkola digital cultural heritage aspirations.
Debbie Symonds is the CEO of Olkola Aboriginal Corporation. She is an Olkola Woman with deep knowledge of Olkola cultural protocols. She maintains close relationships with Olkola People and has led collaborative projects between Olkola and University of Melbourne for seven years.
Katherine Samuel is the administration officer of Olkola Aboriginal Corporation. She is an Olkola woman. She has been engaged in collaborative projects between the Olkola People and University for years.
Shania Grieve is the administration and finance officer of Olkola Aboriginal Corporation. She is an Olkola woman. She has been engaged in collaborative projects between the Olkola People and University for years.
A/Prof Rochus Hinkel is an Associate Professor at Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne. His research focuses on digital technologies that range from XR to AI and digital fabrication.
Dr Hannah Robertson is an ARC DECRA Fellow and Senior Lecturer at Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne. She works on projects in partnership with industry, volunteers and Indigenous communities in remote Australia.
