Reflecting on OCAP Principles: Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession
Much of our work at Kwusen is centred around supporting Indigenous communities with gathering and managing their data. Research conducted with Indigenous communities has often been extractive–with community verification of research data, conclusions and narratives left out of the process. For decades, Indigenous communities have advocated for a better way to conduct research and handle their data. In 1996, the Assembly of First Nations created a National Steering Committee (NSC) in response to the need for better research practices. The NSC, which would later become the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC), first established the Principles of Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession (OCAP) in the year 1998 (FNIGC, 2021).
From his research work with Indigenous communities, Towagh Behr, Kwusen Director of Research & Operations, saw the opportunity for emerging technologies to help address issues surrounding research and data management when he started software development work back in 2009. Kwusen developed the Community KnowledgeKeeper (CKK) to facilitate access to, and protection of, Indigenous research data through a community-controlled digital platform. CKK, GeoKeeper, and NationsConnect are developed and provided to our clients with a commitment to uphold the principles of OCAP.
What are the principles of OCAP?
Ownership, Control, Access and Possession are four core principles that should guide research with Indigenous Peoples, communities, and Nations, supporting Indigenous information governance and data sovereignty. They outline a set of ethical criteria for how Indigenous information must be “collected, protected, used, [and] shared” (FNIGC, 2021).
Ownership
In the same way that individuals own personal information, Indigenous data or information is owned collectively by the community (FNIGC, 2021).
All of the information stored in Kwusen software is the exclusive property of the originating community and is protected by Intellectual Property (IP) laws that situate the client as the owner of all pre-existing IP, never Kwusen.
Control
Indigenous Nations, communities, and representatives have the inherent right to seek and maintain control over all aspects of research and information management processes that impact them (FNIGC 2021).
At Kwusen, we support Indigenous data sovereignty and facilitate community control through software design. CKK and GeoKeeper functionality is customizable and configured according to community-specific research and consultation needs. Community staff members with the required permissions have complete control over data stored in the CKK including the ability to upload, download, edit, and export data as required.
Access
Indigenous peoples must have access to information about themselves and their communities. Indigenous communities have the right to decide who has access to their collective information (FNIGC 2021).
As a web-based digital platform, the CKK makes community data accessible to staff members across teams and departments that might otherwise sit in sea cans or rarely-referenced printed reports. Our Indigenous client communities have exclusive domain over who can access the information contained in their CKK or GeoKeeper. Communities manage an unlimited number of individual user accounts with various permission levels to ensure that data can only be accessed by individuals of their choosing. Permissions that determine a user’s level of access are chosen by the community and can be edited or revoked at any time. In addition, we are working to support Indigenous communities in projects to develop community sharing protocols and to modify existing CKK permissions to match specific Indigenous sharing protocols that can provide broader community member access to specific datasets.
Possession
Possession is foundational to the other principles of ownership, control, and access. Indigenous communities must have physical possession of their data (FNIGC 2021).
Kwusen ensures that all materials, including transcripts and audio/video recordings obtained either through the research process, or sent to us for digitization and upload to a CKK, are returned to the community for physical possession. All materials in the CKK can be exported with the required permissions for use and storage outside of the system. We do not recommend physical software hosting on-site in the community, however all Kwusen software and client data is hosted in Canada.
Our software systems are one small part in a wider movement to further shift research practices towards facilitating accessibility and reaffirming community ownership of research data. We are constantly striving to improve how our practices and tools uphold the OCAP principles. If you have questions or comments on how we can do better, please reach out to continue the conversation.
To learn more about the OCAP principles, visit the First Nations Information Governance Centre website.
References
First Nations Information Governance Council (FNIGC). 2021. “The First Nations Principles of OCAP.” [Webpage]. https://fnigc.ca/ocap-training/