Indigigenius Inc

MISSION IS TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF INDIGENOUS PROFESSIONALS WORKING IN FIELDS OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY TO SUPPORT THE NEEDS AND GOALS OF INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES. VISION: WE ENVISION A WORLD WHERE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE HAVE AN ECOSYSTEM OF TOOLS AND DATA CREATED, CONTROLLED, AND USED BY INDIGENOUS PEOPLE TO ADVANCE THEIR COMMUNITIES. INDIGIGENIUS PROGRAMS BRING AI, MACHINE LEARNING, AND DATA SCIENCE FOCUSED COMPUTER SCIENCE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES INTO INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES. INDIGIGENIUS WORKS WITH COMMUNITY LEADERS TO DEVELOP CULTURALLY INFORMED PROGRAMS TO EXPLORE, LEARN, DEVELOP, RESEARCH, TEACH OTHERS, AND SEE THEMSELVES AS ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS AND PRACTITIONERS.

LAKOTA AI CODE CAMP PROGRAM AIMS TO INSPIRE STUDENTS TO PURSUE PATHWAYS INTO HIGHER EDUCATION AND CAREERS IN ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY FIELDS. LAICC IS A THREE-WEEK LONG SUMMER PROGRAM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WHERE THEY GAIN HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE DEVELOPING PERSONALIZED MOBILE APPS USING INDUSTRY STANDARD SOFTWARE ENGINEERING PRACTICES, COMPUTER SCIENCE, DEEP LEARNING, AND EXTENDED REALITY INCORPORATING INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE AND METHODS. BY INSPIRING THE STUDENTS TO PURSUE THEIR FUTURE IN ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY AND CONNECTING THEM WITH PROFESSIONAL NETWORKS, THE LAICC FULFILLS THE STRATEGIC FOCUS AREAS OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND CAREER READINESS WHILE ALSO LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS FOR ALL THREE ASPECTS OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT: EARLY CAREER EXPOSURE, DIVERSE PATHWAYS TO EMPLOYMENT, AND BRIDGING TRANSITIONS BETWEEN HIGHER EDUCATION AND CAREERS. LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS FOR ACADEMIC SUCCESS THE LAICC PROVIDES FUTURE INDIGENOUS AI RESEARCHERS, PRACTITIONERS, AND PROFESSIONALS WITH A COMMUNITY OF INDIGENOUS PEERS, MENTORS, AND TECHNICAL EXPERTS TO SUPPORT AND UPLIFT THEM AS THEY CONTINUE LEARNING AND DEVELOPING THEIR PROGRAMMING AND AI SKILLS AFTER THE CAMP.

THE FLAIR INITIATIVE SERVES INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES IN THEIR EFFORTS TO REVITALIZE THEIR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE THROUGH TECHNOLOGY. WE ARE BUILDING THE FOUNDATIONS FOR INDIGENOUS VOICE AI IN SYSTEMS EXPLICITLY DESIGNED TO RESPECT DATA SOVEREIGNTY AND LINGUISTIC SELF-DETERMINATION. OUR FOUNDATIONAL AUTOMATIC SPEECH RECOGNITION (ASR) RESEARCH AIMS TO DEVELOP A METHOD FOR THE RAPID CREATION OF CUSTOM MODELS FOR ENDANGERED LANGUAGES. THESE MODELS CAN BE USED FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING, AUDIO TRANSCRIPTION, VOICE-CONTROLLED TECHNOLOGY AND MUCH MORE. WE ENVISION A WORLD IN WHICH INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES HAVE FULL SELF-DETERMINATION AND SOVEREIGNTY OVER THEIR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE. WE IMAGINE TECHNOLOGY SERVING THE REVITALIZATION AND THRIVING OF LANGUAGES AS A TOOL TO CONNECT COMMUNITY MEMBERS, TO CELEBRATE THEIR IDENTITY, AND TO TRANSMIT THEIR CULTURE AND KNOWLEDGE ON THE COMMUNITY'S OWN TERMS.

INDIGENOUS IN AI/ML'S VISION IS TO BUILD AN INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF NATIVE, ABORIGINAL, AND FIRST NATIONS WHO WILL COLLECTIVELY TRANSFORM THEIR HOME COMMUNITIES WITH ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY. BY ELEVATING THE VOICES OF INDIGENOUS ML RESEARCHERS WE WILL INSPIRE FUTURE IMPACTFUL WORK AND BREAK STEREOTYPES. ADDITIONALLY, THIS GROUP WILL STRIVE TO EDUCATE THE BROADER NEURIPS ON CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS ISSUES RELEVANT TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND PRACTICES.

SPONSORED PROJECT: VIRTUAL GWICH'IN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE REVITALIZATION USING TECHNOLOGY AND VIRTUAL LEARNING TOOLS.