Old Knowledge, New Tools: Applying an Indigenous Approach to Social Network Analysis

Program work with American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities necessitates Indigenous approaches and methods for evaluation. AI/AN researchers are working to reclaim evaluation as a traditional value and identify methods that fit into existing Indigenous evaluation frameworks. However, an increased understanding of how to utilize data collection tools appropriately and how they fit within these Indigenous frameworks is still needed. In this article, the author describes the process, rationale, and reflections on using a social network analysis tool while grounded in Indigenous evaluation principles. We discuss how displaying the results using a GIS story map can tell the story of a community of practice of Indigenous plants and foods educators. This article addresses the Southern Door—Be of Good Mind—as it describes a method that centres on community, honors relationships, and focuses on resiliency. By presenting the results through a GIS story map, the data can be gifted back to the communities and connect the relationships on a spatial scale to honour the inseparable connections between Indigenous plants and foods work and the land on which it takes place.