About the Indigenous Data Commons

The Indigenous Data Commons establishes the ethical approach to governing Indigenous data in Australia. It is grounded in recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights, interests and authority in relation to data that concern them, and in the responsibilities that come with collecting, managing and using such data.

Our Mission

Our mission is to improve how Indigenous data is collected, managed and used over time. We do this by supporting access, governance and shared responsibility across research, policy and community settings, while building the capability of Indigenous data stewards and custodians across Australia in all sectors.

Built by the Indigenous Data Network, the Indigenous Data Commons provides a trusted national space where Indigenous data are governed by Indigenous owners and used for Indigenous benefit. Through our online tools, we aim to establish an ethical, Indigenous-led approach to data governance across research, policy, and community settings in Australia.

The Indigenous Data Commons, built by the Indigenous Data Network, is a national, shared digital infrastructure that advances Indigenous authority, governance, and benefit in the management of Indigenous data. It provides a trusted environment where data about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are governed by Indigenous owners and used in ways that align with Indigenous priorities, rights, and wellbeing. Grounded in the recognition of Indigenous sovereignty, the Indigenous Data Commons establishes a nationally coherent and ethical approach to Indigenous data governance across research, policy, service delivery, and community contexts.

Through its federated online platform, the Indigenous Data Commons enables Indigenous custodians to find, describe, manage, and share data without relinquishing local or community control. Rather than centralising raw data, the infrastructure links repositories and catalogues while preserving decentralised governance. This architecture ensures that legal rights, cultural protocols, and Indigenous authority are upheld, supporting Indigenous-defined conditions for data access, use, and decision-making.

The Indigenous Data Commons brings together tools, guidance, and governance frameworks to promote cooperative and responsible data management, including the FAIR and CARE Principles. By operationalising these principles in digital environments, it strengthens the capability of Indigenous data stewards and custodians across all sectors and jurisdictions in Australia, supporting ethical data sharing that delivers benefit to Indigenous peoples.

The agreed definition on Indigenous data is: Data generated, intentionally or not, by, about, or for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Indigenous data refers to information, in any format or medium, collected, analysed, stored, and interpreted within the context of Indigenous individuals, collectives, populations, entities, lifeways, cultures, knowledge systems, lands, biodiversity, water and other resources. It includes data collected, used, or stored by any agency, department, laboratory, organisation, corporation, statutory body, university or research institute, conducted by, with, and about Indigenous people or people, and data that Indigenous communities have generated and maintained themselves. (Indigenous Data Network, 2024)

Together, the Indigenous Data Commons and its partners are working to ensure that Indigenous data are governed ethically and used in ways that deliver lasting benefits for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, communities, and future generations.

The Indigenous Data Commons is an online platform that provides Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with the necessary infrastructure to FIND, RECORD and DESCRIBE Indigenous data while supporting Indigenous Peoples’ rights and interests, and authority to control their data.

© Marcus Lee Design Pty Ltd 2026 Concept Design The Indigenous Data Commons logo, utilises graphic elements from the Indigenous Studies Unit logo, including concentric circular formations symbolising the gathering of Indigenous data. The colours used in the logo reflect the colours of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags, and represent Country (yellow), Water (blue), Community (red) and Gathering (green).The three surrounding coloured shapes represent the finding-Yellow, recording-Red and describing-Green process of the Indigenous Data Commons

The Indigenous Data Network acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we work and live. We pay respect to their Elders, past and present, and the place of Indigenous Knowledge in the academy and beyond. We acknowledge and respect that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have always used resources from the land and waters for nourishment, medicine and healing.