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About Us

The Indigenous Data Network (IDN) is a national initiative that supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in leading the design, governance, and use of data that reflects their cultural values, priorities, and knowledge systems.

Established in 2017, as the outcome of the seminal Indigenous Data Sovereignty Symposium held at the University of Melbourne, the IDN works with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations, research institutions, and government agencies to build relevant and cutting-edge digital infrastructure and strengthen Indigenous data ecosystems. It promotes community-led approaches to data access and management, and builds technical, institutional, and social capacity to support locally driven data practices.

Guided by the CARE Principles for Indigenous data governance —Collective Benefit, Authority to Control, Responsibility, and Ethics — the IDN promotes ethical and culturally responsive approaches to data. It provides tools, training, and resources to support Indigenous-led data governance, including catalogue models, vocabularies, spatial reference data, and digital archiving systems. Through its initiatives, the IDN supports communities to develop sustainable data infrastructures that reflect local knowledge and contribute to community wellbeing and decision-making.

Key Projects: 

  • Improving Indigenous Research Capabilities Phases 1 & 2 (IIRC: Building an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Data Commons) ARDC 
  • IDN Community Data Project (CDP) NIAA

The IDN is led by the Indigenous Studies Unit at the University of Melbourne and brings together a broad coalition of participants: Aboriginal community-controlled organisations, university research partners, industry and government agencies and departments across Commonwealth, state, and territory level. The IDN engages with a wide range of national and international experts in fields including data science, health, education, justice, environmental management, and cultural heritage preservation—all working to support Indigenous-led data practices.

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The Indigenous Data Network acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we work and live. We pay respect to their Elders, past and present, and the place of Indigenous Knowledge in the academy and beyond. We acknowledge and respect that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have always used resources from the land and waters for nourishment, medicine and healing.
© Indigenous Data Network 2025