Restitution through an Indigenous knowledge systems lens

Indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) contemplate the world through an interconnected lens, reflecting the integrated way life is lived and the symbiotic relationship between humans and their immediate tangible and intangible environment. Through our work at Open Restitution Africa, we have begun to see how the invocation of an IKS lens shifts the means and desired ends of restitutionary work around African artefacts (belongings) and human remains (human ancestors). In this paper we outline and demonstrate the ways in which an IKS lens frames the holistic extent of harm and loss that communities and societies of origin have experienced through the destruction and removal of cultural heritage, from their perspectives. We then bring into focus the holistic restitutionary work that needs to be undertaken to realize meaningful reconciliation, reconnection, repair, and restoration. We conclude with the lesson that communities and societies of origin regain agency by turning toward their own systems and contexts, assessing what needs to be restored there , how and with/through whom, and charting their path to meaningful restitution from that vantage point. We invite further research around how framework developers can leverage IKS to evolve their approaches to restitution to meet them on that path.