Lifting the Voices of ʻĀina (Land, Sky, Ocean) in Evaluation: Three Indigenous Perspectives

Abstract Information: At a 2019 research conference focused on Native Hawaiian wellbeing an elder asked, “who speaks for the trees?” The conversation in the room hushed. She had voiced a question we had neglected to ask ourselves. As Indigenous peoples, we perceive that wellbeing is present when the spiritual, human, and the natural environments are in balance and that these are intrinsically intertwined. However, we were falling into the trap of privileging only humans. Our elder reminded us of the voices of those who cannot speak for themselves and of our caretaking responsibilities – relations looking after relations. How can we expect to be nurtured in our own wellbeing if we forget to care for and nurture our non-human relations? How do or can we lift up the voices of the natural environment – ‘āina – as a stakeholder in our evaluation work? How does this connect to understanding decolonization as more than a metaphor, as being about the return of Indigenous lands and the restoration of our caretaking responsibilities for ‘āina so we can be well and prosper? In this session, the presenters explore what this might mean in among the the Anishinaabe of Turtle Island, Māori of Aotearoa New Zealand, and the Kānaka Maoli of Hawaiʻi. Intrinsic to exploring this pathway is the question of “who speaks for the ʻāina?” Our goal in this session is to spark dialogue and consideration of if, when, and how evaluation lifts and respects the voices of the ‘āina and values its wellbeing alongside of and integral to that of the human and spiritual.