Digitaonga = digital taonga (Māori word for treasure)

Indigenous communities across the globe are calling for repatriation to right the wrongs of colonisation, and reunite communities with their precious artefacts. But for museums, repatriation threatens their existence; leaving them with empty display cases and a lack of purpose. So, Digitaonga is working to develop a model where indigenous communities can reconnect and take agency with their artefacts, while museums can still have something to display - all using 3D scanning and blockchain technology.

Digitaonga started from an Adschool brief and has grown over the last 4 years, with funding from the NZ Ministry for Culture & Heritage, and Media Design School and Torrens University. Now we have a team of researchers, tech advisors and developers, working on repatriations around Aotearoa and overseas.