Paper short abstract:

This paper discusses ways of participating in research collaborations in research on contemporary articulations of Kven national minority heritage in museum and media fields, specifically exploring ways to be allies in bringing forth research of relevance to the Kven minority.

Paper long abstract:

As a meeting place for different ethnic groups and cultures, Northern Norway has always been multi-cultural, yet no other Norwegian region has experienced such systematic and lasting assimilation policies targeting minorities. This has caused silencing of the histories of Sámi people and minorities such as the Kvens. Historically, research has also been a part of the colonizing practices in these areas. In this paper we address methodological positions when dealing with aspects of Kven heritage in such areas. We discuss ways of participating in knowledge production based on research collaborations with indigenous and ethnic minority partners. Based on an ongoing research project dealing with contemporary articulations of Kven heritage in museums and media in Northern Norway, we look for ways to be research allies of relevance to Kven communities. Our methodological starting point is participatory research practices in which critics engage in extended forms of interaction, participation, and observation with the communities they study. Yet, in such processes, we discuss with whom to stand within Kven communities, and which arenas we should take part in. Following this, we address ways of meeting the challenge of integrating different types of knowledge fields when participating in research collaborations with Kven partners. We reflect on how mutual learning might be facilitated, and particularly how we, via self-reflexivity and our own situated-ness, might take part in developing academic knowledge of relevance to different contemporary Kven communities.