Editorial

Abstract

The main purpose of the IFLA Indigenous Matters Section is to support the provision of culturally response and effective services to Indigenous communities throughout the world. The main objective is to promote international cooperation in the fields of library, culture, knowledge, and information services to Indigenous communities that meet their intergenerational, community, cultural, and language needs. The Indigenous Matters Section encourages Indigenous leadership within the sector and the exchange of experiences, education, training, and research by connecting, collaborating, and working cooperatively with other IFLA Sections, national Indigenous library associations, the International Indigenous Librarians Forum, and Indigenous cultural memory professionals. During the World Library and Information Congress in 2019, the idea for a special issue of IFLA Journal focused on Indigenous issues in libraries and librarianship was born. When the IFLA Indigenous Matters Section was approached about such a task, the committee discussed the idea and agreed to take on the task with great enthusiasm for sharing Indigenous knowledges and ways of knowing. Therefore, it is with great pleasure that we bring this unique collection of articles to contribute to the ongoing conversation surrounding Indigenous knowledge and its intergeneration transmission within libraries and cultural memory institutions. The members of the Indigenous Matters Section are often asked: “What do you mean by Indigenous?” Or “Who exactly is Indigenous?” Although different countries recognize different definitions for the term, the United Nations agreed on the following definition, as given by José R Martı́nez Cobo in 1987: