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Building connections and Indigenous data governance around national biological collections

Tracks
Kuranda Ballroom
Tuesday, July 28, 2026
4:45 PM - 5:00 PM

Speaker

Ms Brittany Carter
Research Project Advisor
CSIRO

Building connections and Indigenous data governance around national biological collections

ISE Congress 2026 Abstract

Biological research collections, such as herbaria, insect, and faunal collections, are founded in their value to Western science. In Australia, these collections contain specimens from many Indigenous Countries, with the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples often going unacknowledged. CSIRO has co-designed research to bring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voices and views into our biological research collections. Within our herbarium, we have over 800 specimen sheets that contain Indigenous knowledges from across Australia, collected over the last century. Our presentation will discuss the case studies we are completing to understand how we can reconnect Indigenous knowledge to the communities that knowledge comes from.

Biography

Brittany Carter (Wiradjuri, she/her) is a Research Project Advisor with the CSIRO National Collections and Marine Infrastructure research unit. She is based in Canberra and is working to embed Indigenous data sovereignty and governance and self-determination in the biological collections. Brittany's background is in genetics, zoology, and science communication.
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