Green ribbon and blue ribbon stories: Applying a bidjara way of knowing to understanding records

Abstract

Archival turn scholars have argued that to understand a record one needs to consider its broader provenance. Theoretical and conceptual frameworks such as the record continuum model, parallel provenance and societal provenance have aided in debunking the myth of linear, objective and neutral records. While these theories and concepts support the inclusion of Indigenous worldviews in recordkeeping praxis, Indigenous worldviews have been noticeably absent in the formulation of these and other archival theorisations. This article introduces the green ribbon and blue ribbon stories, an Indigenous, specifically Bidjara, conceptual framework for appraising and interpreting archival records. This conceptual framework has been derived from Bidjara ways of being and knowing. This article consists of three parts: The first introduces the conceptual framework and explains its background. The second discusses the intellectual and cultural authority of the framework and protocols for its use, and the final part of the article demonstrates how the green ribbon and blue ribbon stories’ conceptual framework applies to archives.