Indigenous Planning & Design
The Indigenous Public Interest Design Planning Committee is pleased to invite all Indigenous People to participate in a discussion through a half day online panel on “A Place to Call Home: Indigenous Design and Planning” led by Indigenous Leaders and Design/Planning Practitioners. Meet the Committee.
Learning by Sharing – This conversation will continue through a variety of online and in-person opportunities over the next year, culminating in a joint declaration based on actionable knowledge of best practices. See discussion topics.
Why? People should be able to participate in the decisions that shape their lives, and the design of the built and natural environment are important parts of these decisions. The vision of success of these discussions is for design and planning to be an empowering tool for Indigenous communities around the world.
How? We who are from Indigenous communities and dedicate their time/attention to our communities are best suited to guide this discussion and provide our valuable knowledge to engage the power of design to: address our own challenges, elevate our own principles, and celebrate our own culture.
A new field of practice is emerging where designers are collaborating with local communities to harness the benefits of design. It is Public Interest Design (PID). This field is like Public Health in that it addresses intensely local challenges as well as global social, economic and environmental design (SEED) issues. This field is like Public Interest Law in that it provides services to all the public, not just the wealthy and powerful.
The Indigenous Public Interest Design Planning Committee created this mission and the following five principles collectively:
Indigenous People have the right to live in socially, economically, and environmentally healthy communities grounded in cultural heritage and the sacred lands we called or call home.
I-SEED Principles
1
Protect our culture, language, ceremonies, and thus, our inherent rights – across many generations of our continued existence.
2
Preserve and enhance systems for inclusion and representation, so our communities strongly embody who we are as indigenous peoples around the world.
3
Promote social cohesiveness and cultural continuity through discourse that reflects our range of values and social identities.
4
Seek and make community-driven decisions to grow our capacity to plan, design and build in a way that promotes self-sufficiency and robust, living systems of sovereignty.
5
Take care to be good and respectful relatives interconnected to all living things – seen and unseen / known and unknown – who are mindful stewards of our sacred Grandmother Earth.