Overview

This module highlights the often-overlooked technological and scientific contributions of Indigenous communities across the globe. From engineering marvels like agricultural terracing and canoe design to complex knowledge systems in astronomy, medicine, and governance, Indigenous innovations reflect deep ecological intelligence and community stewardship. Students will explore how these technologies arise from relational worldviews and how integrating them into PBL can inspire more ethical, sustainable, and creative design.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this module, students will be able to:

1. Identify at least three Indigenous technologies and describe the ecological or cultural logics behind them.

2. Understand the distinction between extractive appropriation and collaborative innovation.

3. Reflect on how ancestral knowledge systems inform present and future design.

4. Apply a critical lens to innovation, asking: innovation for whom? At what cost? In what context?

Key Terms

• Appropriation vs. Integration
• Technological Relationality
• Ancestral Engineering
• Indigenous Futurism
• Eco-Logical Design

Background Materials

Note: For every module, there is a more expansive list of resources available in the glossary. The readings provided in the module are good starting places for students/educators.

Could Ancient Fish Ponds Help Feed Hawai’i?

Technology Reveals Ancient Wisdom at Budj Bim

Clam Gardens, Ancient Indigenous Technology, and sustainable food source

Bang, M., & Medin, D. (2010). Cultural processes in science education: Supporting the navigation of multiple epistemologies. Science education, 94(6), 1008-1026.

Lewis, J. E., Whaanga, H., & Yolgörmez, C. (2024). Abundant intelligences: placing AI within Indigenous knowledge frameworks. Ai & Society.

Activities: Design Principles

Time: 90 minutes

Format: Design challenge and gallery walk

1.  Mini Gallery (30 min):

• Each project team creates 1 station featuring an Indigenous technology relevant to their project and/or site. Each station should feature the following:
  • A photo or sketch
  • A 1–2 paragraph description
  • A 1-2 paragraph description of the originating culture and the technology’s cultural function
• Examples of Technologies:
  • Zuni waffle gardens
  • Native Hawaiian Loko i’a
  • Maori waka navigation systems
  • Dharawal and Eora Peoples’ boomerang aerodynamics
  • Ancestral Puebloan multichambered irrigation systems (aciquias)
  • Bribi and Cabecar agroforestry
  • Atayal terraced wet rice agriculture
  • Anishinaabe birchbark canoe design
• Note: Students might be prepped before class to choose one of these technologies, a technology of their own interest, or one directly relevant to their site. However, this may also serve as an in-class research opportunity where students are encouraged to pursue information from credible sources during a short period of time.
• Potential Extention: Time can be doubled and students are offered the opportunity to build a smallscale version of a given technology.

2. Viewing (15 min):

• Student groups will hold an open gallery and visit one another’s stations.
• They will take notes on the different stations.

3. Short Group Discussion (15 min):

Use the following prompts to guide group discussion:

• What values or relationships are embedded in these technologies?
• How are these different from or similar to more mainstream “tech” solutions?

4. Design Prompt (30 min):

• In teams, students choose a sustainability problem from their project or course topic. They will work sketch an early-stage solution inspired by one or more of the Indigenous designs presented, but adapted to their project context.
• Note: Depending on the context of the student projects, they may need other examples of potential technologies in addition to the ones they created.

5. Final Reflection (5-10 min)

• Ask students to respond to “How might Indigenous innovation inform how you define ‘innovation’ itself?”

Faculty Notes/Implementation Tips

• Emphasize respect, not romanticization: these technologies are not just artifacts—they’re living systems of knowledge.
• Encourage students to cite their sources if they build on Indigenous technologies in later work.
• Connect this module to global project center sites or local collaborations.

Optional Extension

Ask students to research a local Indigenous invention or method related to their region or project site. How is this knowledge preserved, adapted, or erased?

Assessment Options

Informal: Mini-gallery reflection and viewing, reflection

Formal: Design challenge materials, written research on local invention or method