World Indigenous Research Alliance & Journal (WIRA&J)

• In 2020, the WINHEC International Journal of Indigenous Education Scholarship was renamed the World Indigenous Research Alliance and Journal (WIRA&J) and since 2022 has been managed and governed by the World Indigenous Nations University (WINU).
  
  Background
  

  WIRA&J was officially launched at the 2012 WINHEC AGM and research conference held in Taiwan.
  
  The WIRA&J vision refers to "Indigenous peoples leading research action with, for and by Indigenous peoples through WINHEC collaborations."
  
  The key rationale of WIRA&J is to provide a network for educators, academics, tribal, and community groups collaboratively working to improve the educational futures of Indigenous peoples. The rationale is motivated by three key factors. First, the ongoing educational disparities between Indigenous peoples and non-Indigenous peoples remain glaringly unacceptable. Second, a legacy of loss underpins the on-going crisis of inequalities of Indigenous peoples in education. Third, the loss of land, language, culture, and identity are considered the most significant factors responsible for Indigenous peoples’ underachievement in the current education system.
  The WIRA&J’s mission is to build Indigenous educational researcher capacity and Indigenous research leadership accessible to Indigenous communities and organizations. Through the use of technology, WIRA&J consists of geographically separated research sites or nodes. This mission is being achieved through initiatives that involve fostering respectful relationships between Indigenous peoples and academic institutions to achieve the educational aspirations our communities actively seek. As such, WIRA&J has a number of key goals. First, we are establishing a critical mass of Indigenous scholars who engage in research at international, national and tribal levels in diverse Indigenous contexts. Through this interconnected national and international consortium, Indigenous educational researchers will be empowered to protect and promote diverse Indigenous peoples’ knowledge, stories and histories through evidentiary and culturally astute methods of consultation and engagement.

Purpose

• The WINU Executive in collaboration with the WIRA&J Team will continue to strive for a strong position for Indigenous research on issues of importance to Indigenous people at the forefront of excellence sought by entities such as the United Nations, UNESCO and other national and international research entities.
• Second, we are building on and strengthening the existing culturally and professionally skilled, qualified Indigenous research workforce who will lead in shaping and implementing a global Indigenous research agenda that influences national social policy around Indigenous issues. Through these initiatives, we will provide a unique and viable research alternative to communities, Indigenous and non-Indigenous stakeholders, governments, and service providers nationally and internationally.
• Finally, we will enable and engage in Indigenous-led research as a visible and central component contributing to the development and growth of nations that proactively embraces the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and other instruments of international note such as the Declaration of Human Rights for Indigenous Peoples

Events

WINHEC Research Conferences – held every three years and hosted by a WINHEC member country at the WINHEC/WINU Annual General Meeting.

Next WINHEC Research Conference to be held in 2026 (details will be posted on the WINHEC & WINU website)