Access For Who‪?‬ Open Restitution Africa

As we move towards the end of the series we ask - How can we build a sustainable digital infrastructure that is people-centred and Africa centred? We reflect on indigenous data sovereignty, data stewardship and creative strategies toward collective care for digital data. Positing that digital collections are not a point of reversal to an idealized past but rather a point of departure toward a collectively imagined future. 

Speakers: Angela Okune, Temi Odumosu, Minne Atairu, Andrea Wallace, Molemo Moiloa, Neema Iyer, Chao T. Maina

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This episode explores the complex and entangled questions around legal ownership of digital collections in the face of already contested physical collections. While Western IP systems are built around individual ownership, indigenous knowledge systems are designed to have communal and collective benefits. What limitations and dangers does this present in the context of mass digitisation? Who has the right to make digital copies in the first place? And how can we imagine legal ownership outside Western-oriented frameworks? 

Speakers: Nothando Migogo, Molemo Moiloa, Chao T. Maina, Andrea Wallace, Mulenga Kapwepwe

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In this episode, we reflect on digital practice as a form of repair, care and knowledge creation.  Faced with challenges around access to data, absence of archives and physical removal of objects from communities - How are digital collections creating room for new African narratives and imaginations? What potential does digital restitution hold for African heritage? And how can this contribute to the physical return of artefacts? 

Speakers: Temi Odumosu, Minne Atairu, Molemo Moiloa, Kọ́lá Túbọ̀sún, Samba Yonga, Mulenga Kapwepwe, Neema Iyer, Chao T. Maina

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This episode takes a deep dive into the origins of museum practice and the colonial origins of museum collections. How did Western museums end up amassing hundreds of thousands of objects? How does this legacy influence digitisation today? We explore ways in which African museum practitioners are going beyond these entrenched legacies to create innovative approaches that centre indigenous knowledge and prioritize people over objects. 

Speakers: Temi Odumosu, Molemo Moiloa, Golda Ha-Eiros, Samba Yonga, Mulenga Kapwepwe, Chao T. Maina

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In this episode, we begin by reflecting on the opportunities that digital technology presents for African societies while confronting the inequalities and biases it entrenches. We explore notions of digital access and digital neutrality in the context of African languages, histories and knowledge systems as we reflect on what it means to create equitable digital futures within and outside museum spaces. 

This podcast is brought to you by the Open Restitution Africa project, a collaboration between African Digital Heritage and Andani.Africa. It is made possible with the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss as part of the 99 Questions Podcast.

Speakers: Temi Odumosu, Molemo Moiloa, Kọ́lá Túbọ̀sún, Mulenga Kapwepwe, Neema Iyer, Chao T. Maina

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This trailer briefly explains what to expect on Access For Who? hosted by Chao Taiyana Maina and Molemo Moiloa.

We explore digital restitution in detail; if digital restitution is being presented as a strategy for sake keeping and preservation, we are asking for who? And for what purposes? And are we making decisions about digitisation that ensure these objectives are met in ethical, equitable ways?

Enjoyed the trailer? Subscribe to the podcast to be notified when a new episode drops. This podcast is brought to you by the Open Restitution Africa project, a collaboration between African Digital Heritage and Andani.Africa. It is made possible with the Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss as part of the 99 Questions Podcast.

For more information, visit our websites:

Open Restitution Africa

99 Questions at Stiftung Humboldt Forum im Berliner Schloss