Three Sisters Data

Three Sisters Consulting

Three Sisters Data

Igniting a powerful movement that empowers our communities to reclaim our stories through relatable data sovereignty traditions.

Chatham, ON, Canada

Canada

For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models

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Indigenous communities have historically and continue to face challenges with how our data is collected, stored, and shared. As evidenced by the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) commentary of Bill C-27 in October 2023, we continue to be excluded from consultation in current national dialogues at the intersection of technology, ethics, and methods. This overlooks our perspectives, rights, and systemic exclusion and prevents us from sharing our gifts with the world. Indigenous engineers and data scientists today are trained in data practices which are largely shaped by Western frameworks, overlooking Indigenous ways of knowing, and disconnecting data from cultural context, meaning, and community relevance. As a result, even organizations with the resources to develop their staff in these areas will find that Indigenous decision-makers struggle to engage meaningfully with their own data, and communities are excluded from their own storytelling process altogether. This project addresses the specific problem of inequitable and culturally inappropriate data visualization, governance, and technological intellectual property (IP) practices. It focuses on the lack of tools and frameworks that reflect Indigenous perspectives, values, and sovereignty. The issue is especially pressing in healthcare and social services, where data drives policies and outcomes that directly affect Indigenous lives.

Our solution creates a new way of working with data—one that centers Indigenous perspectives in relating to, visualizing, and governing information. We are launching a healthcare pilot in partnership with our communities. This initiative will explore how to collect, store, govern, and visualize data in ways that reflect the priorities of Indigenous communities. Through pilot implementations in Ontario, Canada, we will test technologies using advanced privacy and cybersecurity tools. Throughout the process, we will co-create culturally grounded approaches and visualizations alongside elders, healers, and leaders— strengthening its relevance, trust, and participation. Our solution reframes data not as abstract numbers, but as stories. How can data reflect values like love, honesty, and bravery? What can our data accomplish when expressed through art or traditional knowledge? The result is a set of methods and technologies that communities can relate to, trust, and most importantly, replicate. With more culturally relevant tools, leadership can make better, more responsive decisions. Over time, we will expand this model to compare the use cases of Western and Indigenous data using a "Two-Eyed Seeing" approach—ultimately sparking a movement toward equitable, community-owned data practices.

Our solution serves three personas: 1. Indigenous Leadership - The first represents leadership who will be empowered to support their decision-making by data, a capacity which has never been done due to the irrelevance of Western data approaches as well as technological misalignment. 2. Indigenous Communities – When decisions are made by Indigenous leadership, communities often cannot relate to the underlying motivation behind their reasoning. Gaps in relevant and effective scientific expression can prevent our communities from fully enjoying and reinforcing those processes. Applying an Indigenous lens to data storytelling helps our communities connect more deeply with our own abundance and ways of knowing. 3. The Collective Whole – Scientific reconciliation is a group effort, and it begins with a conversation. By opening the door to what is possible, we pave the way for others to follow. This not only benefits Indigenous communities but also transforms how the wider scientific community engages with data by introducing new ways of understanding and relating to information.