Collaborations between tribal and nontribal organizations bring diverse communities together, often for the first time, to educate and learn, to address misinterpretations of the past, and to share cultural resources and knowledge. By examining data obtained through a nationally distributed survey, this research explores how successful partnerships between tribal and nontribal institutions are initiated, developed, and maintained; examines the degree to which the Protocols for Native American Archival Materials were used in the development of policies, procedures, and memorandums of understanding; and reveals the "lessons learned" across a wide range of collaborative projects and partnerships. This overview of collaborative models is intended to offer best practices for both tribal and nontribal organizations interested in sharing useful skills, knowledge, and resources through partnerships.

This article examines a long-term collaboration between a nontribal and a tribal organization—Western Washington University and the Lummi Nation. The narrative describes efforts to share and understand the Native cultural resources acquired by the university in the years prior to the development of professional practices for the appropriate management and use of Native American archival materials and explores a series of moral and ethical challenges from both the Native and non-Native perspectives. The article offers strategies for sharing expertise, knowledge, and cultural resources that can assist in addressing historical injustices, misunderstandings, and mistrust founded in the misappropriation of Native heritage by non-Native institutions.

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