The Indigenous Knowledge Systems Lab is a place Indigenous practitioners can work together to integrate Indigenous thinking and systems into other practices. By making research and research translation public and transparent through very regular and open communication of activities and yarns, the IKS Lab seeks to be an open source, agent for change for our world.
It is not a traditional, closeted university research laboratory. It champions an open model for engagement, translation, sharing ideas, and sparking new conversations. This could be in the form of more traditional discussion and research papers, through to sharing ideas and provocations via yarns, podcasts, public events and social media.
MEET THE TEAM
DR TYSON YUNKAPORTA – FOUNDER/SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW
As the founder of the IKS Lab at Deakin, Tyson is an academic, an arts critic, and a researcher who belongs to the Apalech Clan in far north Queensland. He looks at global systems from an Indigenous perspective, asking how contemporary life diverges from the pattern of creation. How does this affect us? How can we do things differently? Tyson also carves traditional tools and weapons.
DR JOHN DAVIS – SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW
John Davis is a proud Murri Ambae man. He is a Traditional Owner of the western sides of Bunya Bunya Mountains,Country we call Boobagarrn Ngumminge. “My people are Cobble Cobble kinnected to Warra and Dalby. We have links directly to the Barunggam and Wakka Wakka people”. John completed his PhD in Indigenous Community Models of Education – Community Durithunga, with the Queensland University of Technology. Other research interests include Indigenous languages as LOTE, embedding Indigenous Knowledges and Indigenous ways to multimodal literacy. John is passionate about our people, our languages and culture and working and moving our ways forward as best practice in education and community development.
JACK MANNING BANCROFT – HONORARY FELLOW
Jack Manning Bancroft is the CEO and Founder of AIME, an award-winning social movement that uses mentoring and imagination to unlock the potential of marginalised youth to create a fairer world. Jack, a proud Indigenous Australian from the Bundjalung nation, founded AIME in 2005 at the age of 19 to find a solution to Indigenous inequality in Australia. In 2010, he received the Australian Human Rights Medal, GQ Man of Inspiration, New South Wales Young Australian of the Year and the University of Sydney Young Alumni of the Year awards. In 2016 he received an Honorary Fellowship from Western Sydney University, and in the same year, he became the youngest person in Australian history to receive an Honorary Doctorate from the University of South Australia.
JOSHUA WATERS – PhD STUDENT AND RESEARCH FELLOW
Joshua Waters is a proud K/Gamilaroi man currently studying at his PhD within the ARC Australian Spirituality: Wellness, Wellbeing and Risks project at Deakin University. His past research examines the key convergences between Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) and natural systems combined with Western scientific domains by using land-based pedagogical approaches to inform methodology, theory development and solution-finding to global complex challenges and socio-political problems.
SISTER LABS
Deakin University’s IKS Lab is excited to announce the launch of a new ‘sister lab’ at Algoma University in Ontario, Canada, established in 2024. The Lab is part of a new partnership with the university that aims to address global issues from the perspectives of indigeneity all around the world.
“This is the first of many sister labs emerging as a widespread collective to shape change and inform regenerative design solutions that will sustain future generations,” says Dr Yunkaporta. “Amidst the grift, noise, pseudo-science and confusion of the recent gold rush on Indigenous Knowledge … [our] Labs are holding our ground in the land and Lore that has sustained our species through many catastrophes.”
The new Canadian IKS Lab will be led by Dr Melanie Goodchild, Academic Director and Anishnaabe (Ojibway) systems and complexities scholar at Algoma University.
