Thesis Defence: Regener/relational Histories

Aaron Leon, supervised by Dr. Christine Schreyer and Dr. Tania Willard, will defend their thesis titled “Regener/relational Histories: Working With Archives, Art, And Community To Help Regenerate Histories And Culture With The Splatsin Tsm7aksaltn Through Data Sovereignty” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies – Indigenous Knowledges theme.

An abstract for Aaron Leon’s thesis is included below.

Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in-person defences.

Abstract

This thesis examines how Splatsin (Secwépemc) community archives and media libraries can be transitioned into the digital era in ways that strengthen Indigenous data sovereignty, sustain relational responsibilities, and support language and cultural regeneration. Grounded in a community-based research orientation and situated within Secwépemc epistemology, the project builds on the author’s long-term relationships with the Splatsin Tsm7aksaltn (Splatsin Teaching Centre) Society and with Elders who have guided the archive’s creation and ongoing use. The study addresses issues of digitization: while digital systems can increase usability, preservation, and intergenerational access, they can also sever knowledges from knowledge keepers, intensify risks of extraction, and enable misuse through sharing, platform dependence, and emerging threats such as AI-enabled data scraping. To address this, the thesis mobilizes a Secwépemc story framework (slexéy’e), the story of Chief Swan, Chief Elk, and Porcupine, as an analytic and ethical guide, emphasizing preparation, listening, consent, and negotiated agreements as foundations for good governance of shared resources. Methods include interviews with six Splatsin Elders closely connected to the archive and one expert interview with an Indigenous archivist involved in the Indigitization program. Findings highlight include: culturally grounded protections for Splatsin knowledges in digital environments, including ongoing attribution to knowledge keepers, elders, and protocols that embed responsibility alongside access. Governance models that move away from externally imposed identity regimes by exploring family-verified access anchored in genealogy and community relationships. Resilient preservation practices that combine technical best practices (ex. redundant backups) with place-based ethics that insist digital stewardship must not replace land-based learning, ceremony, and face-to-face mentorship. By bringing together archival practice, Indigenous governance principles (including OCAP and CARE), and community narratives of regeneration, the thesis contributes a relational approach to digital archiving that treats access, protection, and cultural continuity as inseparable.