Title: Cross-cultural Co-creation of Digitalization Efforts for preserving Indigenous Knowledge

KASPER RODIL (FRAME APR. 2012 – APR. 2015)

Summary: The position addresses imbrications and limitations of designing cross-cultural ICT prototyped artifacts and methodologies to conserve and co-create digitalization of Indigenous Knowledge and cultural content pertaining to Intangible Heritage. The project is grounded in Participatory Action Research and methodologically in Participatory Design and seeks through in-situ design sessions and prototype development in Namibia together with indigenous groups in the Kalahari, to design approaches to interfaces and interaction design located in local epistemology.

Background: Indigenous Herero elders in Namibia have for decades transferred valuable cultural and local knowledge to youths through interpersonal interactions in collectivistic rural villages. The youths are now urged to study a ‘modern’ curriculum as directed by governmental rules and regulations – usually far away from their villages resulting in few home returns per year. This creates a knowledge paradox where youths can only fully partake in one epistemological system, while the tradition for the Hereros is that they return after years living in the city to the rural areas in the villages they come from. The consequences hereof limit not only to how to sustainably interact in the ecosystem, but will in few years have an impact on their cultural self-understanding. Generally, attempts to preserve and facilitate this knowledge transfer and conservation have proven difficult due to Western designers’ origin in another epistemological system and the technology production emanates from the dominant societies.