ATS3634 - Indigenous peoples globally - 2018

The unit introduces students to basic issues connected with indigeneity such as the first peoples concept; historical engagements with colonial or settler populations; the importance of distinctiveness to indigenous identities; and the importance and vulnerability of heritage in indigenous groups.

The unit extends these understandings by exploring the emergence of indigeneity as a global political movement. It examines the emergence of a global political discourse of indigeneity, as well as the implications of this emergence for domestic political regimes. By referring to African, Australian, Asian and American examples, it explores how indigenous groups have secured better outcomes by advocating for their causes in global institutions and networks in which an indigenous rights framework has taken shape. It explores the media forms and celebrity advocacy (such as the project of the rock star Sting in the Amazon) that made indigeneity a global concept; the problems occurring when indigeneity is valued as a political resource by groups; and the stress accompanying indigenous discourses which appear to replicate primordial movements. The unit contains a three-week module on indigenous languages in Australia.

Upon successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:

1. explain and illustrate key concepts and debates in studies of global indigeneity;
2. reflect on and analyse preconceived ideas about what indigenous peoples and cultures might be;
3. articulate broad connections between history, cultural identity and expression and access to land, resources and political power;
4. analyse indigenous issues pertinent to specific cultural-geographical environments;
5. express complex and independent analytical and critical thinking, and produce clear, original and coherent accounts of theories, knowledge and logical argument;
6. apply qualitative academic research methods and skills to identify, examine and evaluate data, texts and sources to reveal patterns, themes and meanings.

Within semester assessment: 100%

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

See also Unit timetable information

Anthropology

Indigenous cultures and histories

International studies