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A review by wynteramethyst
True Tracks by Terri Janke
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
Terri Janke is a lawyer, and an expert in her niche of Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) law. If you look up any resources about dealing with cultural content in Australia, if Janke hasn’t written it herself, she’s cited for it.
Chapter 1 describes Janke’s best practice framework for ethical Indigenous engagement – what she means when she references general guiding principles for ethical engagement. The other 16 chapters are plaited with:
1. overviews of case studies driven by personal anecdote in Janke’s position in ICIP events,
2. brief evaluations of whether or not they seem to be exemplary of good practice (informed by the True Tracks framework of Chapter 1) and,
3. context provision about how ICIP is viewed by the legal system that helps the reader to better understand the case studies.
I get the impression that the intention for the book was that readers would pick, maybe, 1 to 3 chapters that interested them and just read those, because I read it from start to finish and it was rather... repetitive. Many case studies would overlap with the themes of other chapters and so would be rehashed.
But the overall formula has given me a much more robust contextual backdrop with which I can better understand contemporary ICIP disputes and the moral responsibilities I have as an artistic practitioner in a space governed by (the lack of) ICIP laws, which is wonderful! And exactly what I hoped I would gain from it, so lucky me.
With this personal experience in mind, I don’t know that I’d describe it as a ‘guide’, as it boasts on its cover. If you’re expecting chronological instructions on how to go about ethically incorporating Indigenous material into anything you’re pursuing, I can tell you that you’re not going to get them.
Frankly, I don’t think that’s possible, and Janke herself makes it very clear that ICIP is a space that needs to be navigated with patience, respect, and a willingness to invest in meaningful and collaborative relationships. If that's what you're looking for, I wholeheartedly recommend it.
Chapter 1 describes Janke’s best practice framework for ethical Indigenous engagement – what she means when she references general guiding principles for ethical engagement. The other 16 chapters are plaited with:
1. overviews of case studies driven by personal anecdote in Janke’s position in ICIP events,
2. brief evaluations of whether or not they seem to be exemplary of good practice (informed by the True Tracks framework of Chapter 1) and,
3. context provision about how ICIP is viewed by the legal system that helps the reader to better understand the case studies.
I get the impression that the intention for the book was that readers would pick, maybe, 1 to 3 chapters that interested them and just read those, because I read it from start to finish and it was rather... repetitive. Many case studies would overlap with the themes of other chapters and so would be rehashed.
But the overall formula has given me a much more robust contextual backdrop with which I can better understand contemporary ICIP disputes and the moral responsibilities I have as an artistic practitioner in a space governed by (the lack of) ICIP laws, which is wonderful! And exactly what I hoped I would gain from it, so lucky me.
With this personal experience in mind, I don’t know that I’d describe it as a ‘guide’, as it boasts on its cover. If you’re expecting chronological instructions on how to go about ethically incorporating Indigenous material into anything you’re pursuing, I can tell you that you’re not going to get them.
Frankly, I don’t think that’s possible, and Janke herself makes it very clear that ICIP is a space that needs to be navigated with patience, respect, and a willingness to invest in meaningful and collaborative relationships. If that's what you're looking for, I wholeheartedly recommend it.