Hometown
United States
Program
Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies
Supervisor
Dr. Fiona P. McDonald
Awards
Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship
Public Scholars Initiative Award
Please describe your research.
Ecological Storytelling examines how Indigenous-led participatory filmmaking supports the revitalization of ecological knowledge and affirms traditional governance in Ulithi Atoll, Federated States of Micronesia.
What does being a Public Scholar mean to you?
The responsibility that comes with being a Public Scholar in Ulithi and beyond means expanding the scope and impact of research to directly benefit a range of publics in tangible ways by making media that support their goals and vision.
In what ways do you think the PhD experience can be re-imagined with the Public Scholars Initiative?
The PhD experience can be re-imagined by centering research on community values, priorities, and protocols. It shifts the focus from producing knowledge solely for the academy to creating work that prioritizes reciprocity and accountability into projects from the outset.
How do you envision connecting your PhD work with broader career possibilities?
Connecting my PhD work with broader career possibilities means continuing my responsibility to the Ulithi community by supporting their ongoing requests to create digital media content. I envision my career remaining deeply rooted in community-led filmmaking and digital storytelling, ensuring these practices are accountable to the community.
How does your research engage with the larger community and social partners?
This research is co-designed with Paramount Chief Magul Rulmal, Ulithian community leaders, Chiefs, and youth. Through inter-island participatory filmmaking workshops, I am actively involved with community members across Yap State and share films with the Micronesian diaspora abroad via digital platforms, community screenings, and educational networks. Participants shape both the creation and circulation of films, ensuring sovereignty over their stories.
How do you hope your work can make a contribution to the public good?
I hope my work contributes to the public good by supporting Indigenous-led filmmaking that documents ecological knowledge, reef stewardship practices, and cultural traditions in Ulithi Atoll and their neighboring Outer Islands atolls within Yap State, Micronesia. By co-creating media with Chiefs, elders and youth, these films strengthen intergenerational learning, cultural continuity, and Indigenous leadership, while remaining publicly accessible. This research demonstrates how scholarly work can respond directly to community priorities, uphold Indigenous data sovereignty, and extend the reach and activation of knowledge beyond the academy.
Why did you decide to pursue a graduate degree?
I pursued a graduate degree to critically examine digital media as more than a tool of documentation and to elevate its positionality as a tool of activation and sovereignty: one that can mobilize knowledge, strengthen cultural continuity, and support Ulithian leadership in the face of mounting external pressures such as climate change and militarization.
Why did you choose to come to UBC Okanagan and study?
UBC offers a unique academic environment for anticolonial, community-led, and interdisciplinary research within public scholarship. The Collaborative and Experimental Ethnography Lab under Dr. Fiona P. McDonald is an ideal fit for this work in visual anthropology, where public scholarship is not only supported, but also encouraged.
Kelsey Doyle is a UBC Okanagan Public Scholar. Learn more about the Public Scholars Initiative (PSI).