Orang Asli Project

Orang Asli - 'the Original People'

I was born in Malaysia and I have become interested in the Orang Asli,(Native People of Malaysia), as a result of Research I did for the Native Planet organisation.

I am the Facilitator for a Project on Indigenous Knowledge Management for the Orang Asli people.

Indigenous Knowledge has been defined as :-
"the unique, traditional, local knowledge existing within and developed around the specific conditions of women and men indigenous to a particular geographic area".

The objective of the Project is to evaluate the role of ICT in creating a permanent record the local customs and traditions of the Orang Asli.
I have created a Bulletin Board for people who share my interest in the Orang Asli.

Helpful contacts include Antares, Colin Nicholas, Peter van der Helm and Rudy (an Orang Asli who maintains a Blog).

Rizuan is the Coordinator for a Semai Group at Bidor called SPNS), and he also leads a team that maintains a Web Site called Indigenous Knowledge (IK) Net

Theremainder of this Page shows the major Steps in the Project.
If you are interested in my work, I would be pleased to hear from you.

STEP	DESCRIPTION
1	Request permission to make contact with the Orang Asli as required by the Malaysian Government Department of Orang Asli Affairs.
2	Establish the Scope, probably including some of the People that I profiled for Native Planet, including the Semai and Temiar.
3	The Keene State Orang Asli Institute, is an interesting resource.
4	The World Bank has an answer to 'What is Indigenous Knowledge Mgt ?'
5	Review the feasibility of using the ICT Toolkit for Indigenous Knowledge Management described in this excellent Paper from ArchiMuse (qv). This describes its application to the world of Australian Aborigines.
6	Review feasibility of using Native Maps to record Habitats of Orang Asli.
7	Consider publishing a Book on the Orang Asli, with Native Map Books
8	Ensure security of the IKM Intellectual Property Rights of the material.
9	Review the results of my work against the UNESCO Register of Native People and Indigenous Knowledge.
9	Create a Community of Practice for OA Indigenous Knowledge.
9	Maintain a list of OA IK that I have compiled.