Written by Sra Kacaw (Bo-Jun Chen).
Image courtesy Sra Kacaw (Bo-Jun Chen).
In April of this year, I attended the 22nd United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, where I met Margaret Yun-Pu. Although we didn’t know each other for a long time, I learned that Margaret Yun-Pu is an Indigenous youth searching for her own ethnic identity and her family’s ethnic history. We engaged in deeper interactions when we discussed the history of the Amis ethnic group and the development of the Indigenous people in Hualien.
We stayed in touch after the New York trip, and I learned that she and Jiun-Yu Liu were working on the exhibition, Kuroshio Odyssey: Maritime Memories, Culture, and Landscapes (hereafter KO). This exhibition, focusing on the theme of “space and ethnicity,” featured an array of physical exhibitions and multimedia three-dimensional presentations. It showcased Taiwan’s rich maritime culture and its ethnic diversity on an international stage.
Bridging the Gap: Connecting Seattle with Indigenous Communities in Hualien, Taiwan
While planning the KO exhibition, I had a discussion with Margaret Yun-Pu and Jiun-Yu Liu. Margaret invited Indigenous communities in Taiwan to collaborate, prompting me to search for colleagues who might accompany me. I started by pinpointing the topics we aimed to share through the exhibition. As the Kuroshio Current flows through Eastern Taiwan, what are the ethnic groups living in that area? How can we introduce the marine and material culture to the people in Seattle?
I thought of the Hualien County Government and the Hualien Indigenous Community College, which have a long history of promoting tribal cultural heritage and international connectivity in Austronesia. We were privileged to have lecturers from the Indigenous Community College to join us. We collaboratively organized a series of events to bring the Indigenous cultures from Hualien, Taiwan, to the audience in Seattle.
Dumai Manaaki, who is in charge of the Hualien County Government’s non-governmental organization to promote Austronesia connectivity, shared how Hualien County has been enhancing ties with various Austronesian countries in recent years. Sayang Anang illuminated the intangible cultural assets of the Amis Dongchang tribe’s Boat Rituals and shared his perspectives on the traditional Hualien Amis food. Uki Bauki, the Kavalan director, participated in the screening of her documentary work on the Indigenous peoples of Taiwan and led the post-screening discussion. She also initiated the dialogue of the Kavalan traditional restoration of bridal dress artefacts. I presented a collection spanning nearly a century of women’s traditional costumes from the Hualien Cikasuan community, highlighting the evolution of Amis costumes. I also shared the results of my research on the cultural heritage of the Cikasuan Battle. Through various presentations, people from Seattle and the University of Washington were able to learn about the historical and current endeavours of Hualien’s Indigenous cultural practitioners.
Sustaining the Transnational Connection
Hualien County has a rich and diverse ethnic culture. In recent years, In alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it has fostered development in international issues, such as the slow food movement for Indigenous peoples, establishing connections between Austronesian countries (regions), and industrial cooperation. In recent years, the Indigenous Community College has also offered courses on international issues, aiming to deepen the understanding of international Indigenous peoples, facilitate conversation about contemporary global Indigenous issues, and strengthen ties with international Indigenous communities.
Therefore, in addition to travelling to Seattle to participate in the KO, we also had the opportunity to discuss with Margaret and Ji-Yu the possibility of continuing the exchange in the future. We hope to promote deeper and more meaningful connections between the Hualien Indigenous Community College and the KO exhibition team. Here are some initiatives we hope to pursue together in the future.
First, we hope to organize more educational activities, including lectures, workshops, and learning events, with a focus on increasing public understanding of Indigenous cultures in Taiwan and the Seattle area. Second, we hope to work collaboratively to protect the natural and cultural resources of Taiwan’s Indigenous peoples, especially traditional knowledge, and lands. Through knowledge sharing and collaboration, we hope to address factors that threaten these resources together, such as climate change and environmental degradation. Third, we will invite Indigenous Community College members and cultural practitioners to participate in collaborative planning projects between the two regions. We hope these projects could lead to in-depth discussions on the cultures, languages, histories, and traditions of Taiwan’s Indigenous peoples. Finally, we will also continue initiatives like the Kuroshio Odyssey Tour and explore other avenues for exchanges, visits, and ongoing communication.
Promoting inter-museum exchanges
On our KO journey, we met with Polly Olsen, the Indigenous Representative at the Burke Museum, Holly Barker, the Curator for Oceanic and Asian Culture, and Ellen Chang, the Director of Arts and Culture at the Taiwan Studies Program at the University of Washington. Ms. Olsen’s role in providing local perspectives and tribal insights resonates with our work in Hualien, Taiwan, where we facilitate meaningful dialogues between tribes and the government in a transformative way. Burke Museum’s approach to Indigenous issues is something that museums in Taiwan can learn from.
Ms. Barker introduced us to the museum’s long-standing collections of artefacts from Taiwan’s Indigenous peoples and welcomed the possibility of further collaboration in the future. This visit initiated a discussion about the potential partnership with Hualien County’s public museums, including the Hualien County Indigenous Museum and the Hualien County Museum of Archaeology, promising a sustained connection between KO and Indigenous communities in Taiwan.
The Hualien County Museum of Archaeology has been dedicated to preserving local Indigenous culture history and fostering community development. Through inter-museum collaboration, we aim to facilitate the exchange of artefacts for exhibitions, organize scholarly seminars on Indigenous cultures and histories, and avoid cultural misappropriation. Our commitment extends to actively pursuing the decolonization of museums through continued dialogue and interaction.
Historically, scholars and collectors appropriated cultural artefacts from Indigenous tribes during the colonial era. Today, while access to these artefacts has improved for Indigenous peoples in museums, the conversation and action regarding repatriation require ongoing attention. We anticipate that through a partnership with the Burke Museum and Hualien’s local museums, we can create pathways for Taiwanese Indigenous peoples— the rightful heirs of these artefacts—to reconnect with their cultural legacy. We are grateful for the invitation to KO and are optimistic about further collaborations. We look forward to collaborations with tribal representatives in both regions, aiming to curate programs that truly reflect local cultures and expectations. We believe that ongoing cultural exchanges between Indigenous artists, artisans and cultural practitioners can foster a deeper connection between Taiwan and Seattle in the future.
This article was published as part of a special issue on Kuroshio Odyssey Part II: Insights from Indigenous Collaborators.
Taiwan Insight 