**2. Study Approaches and Methods**

This research applied the approaches of post-colonial theories and methods, with special attention to cultural sensitivity in the research process [12]. We consulted, negotiated, and dialoged with people and scholars from indigenous communities. In order to highlight the subjectivity and diversity of indigenous heritage, we focused on continuous listening to local voices, ongoing negotiation of positionality, and proceeding reflection on equal relationship with communities and people. To capture a range of types of cultural heritage, six cases were undertaken. The cases dealt with different communities and different resources, offering a range of development experiences and alternatives.

As summarized in Table 1, multiple qualitative methods were used in the project. Fieldwork, participant observation, participatory action research, visual analysis of indigenous weaving craftworks, and in-depth interviews were carried out over a 3-year period. The project explored what cultural heritage means to indigenous peoples and their communities, and what forms of representation and developments arise within these practices. Indigenous heritage is seen as an embodied practice, so the paper addresses the negotiated character of knowledge production with reference to the knowledge interfaces between local communities and external agents of change who have their own practices and discourses.


**Table 1.** Research methods for the six cases.
