Project Description:

This project examined topics of Critical Librarianship centered around building inclusive and accessible library collections. My contribution to the group project focused on examining Indigenous Cataloguing, and approaches currently being employed to transform established cataloguing systems to fit indigenous perspectives.

Historically, Indigenous communities throughout the world have faced challenges with the organization of cultural knowledge held by institutions such as libraries, museums, and archives. My research investigated biases in standardized cataloguing systems from the 19th century and found examples of institutions developing strategies to better represent the needs of their local or regional indigenous community.

Rationale:

The goal of the team was to examine topics under critical librarianship as a framework. Individual topics were selected and the objective of my research in indigenous cataloguing was to examine standards in place for this user group which has been notoriously marginalized throughout the years. My research also identified actionable practices that are being implemented today which can inspire institutions to change their approaches cataloguing indigenous knowledge, thereby better serving the community.