Archaeology is often framed as a neutral Scientific practice on data collection, standardized methodologies, and material analysis. Yet when working with Indigenous Ancestors and their Belongings, it is deeper than practice. Archeaology carries responsibilities that extend far beyond technical procedures. It requires respect, accountability, and an ethical relationship with the Earth, the Waters, and the communities whose histories are being studied.

This session centers on the importance of rematriation within Archaeological practices, with a focus on the return of Indigenous Ancestors and their Belongings to the communities from which they originate. Rematriation is not only an act of physical return, but a restoration of responsibility, authority, and relational knowledge that has long been displaced by colonial research frameworks.

The presentation emphasizes the value of oral history, land-based knowledge, and Indigenous worldviews as legitimate and essential forms of data. These knowledge systems offer interpretive depth that cannot be accessed through material analysis or written accounts alone. By prioritizing Indigenous languages and epistemologies, Archaeological sites are understood not as a static location or resources, but as living relatives, places embedded with memory and spirit. Reminding us to maintain those ongoing relationships.

The session also explores the reclamation of Archaeology through Indigenous language, challenging Western Scientific terminology and proposing Indigenous language-based understandings of Archaeological concepts. Language shapes interpretation: reclaiming it is a crutial step towards Indigenous authority within the discipline.

By bringing together rematriation, community-led interpretation, and Indigenous knowledge systems. This session calls for Archaeological practices rooted in responsibility rather than extration. From Mother Earth to our hands, we as Archaeologists hold a profound obligation to ensure that what is unearthed is treated not as data alone, but as relations that must ultimately be returned to their peoples to be respectfully cared for and loved.