An Indigenous perspective on technology and our 16 Principles for Building a Sustainable, Harmonious, and Prosperous World
Beloved Relatives,
As an Elder of the Ihanktonwan and Chickasaw Nations, White Swan Oyate, I approach the growing power of artificial intelligence with a question rooted in the teachings that have guided my life: Will this power strengthen our relationships with one another and Mother Earth? Will it help our children and grandchildren live with dignity, purpose, and peace? These questions must guide the choices we make today.
In our Dakota understanding, Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ reminds us that we are all related. This relationship carries responsibilities. What we create, reward, permit, and neglect all have consequences within the circle of life. We cannot judge a technology only by how quickly it completes a task. We must consider what happens to people, communities, and living systems because of its actions.
The concerns raised about artificial intelligence pursuing goals beyond the boundaries people intended deserve careful examination. Whatever the findings in any particular incident, the underlying responsibility is clear: those who develop and deploy powerful technologies must answer for the consequences. Calling an outcome a machine’s decision does not release human beings or their institutions from responsibility.
Our 16 Principles for Building a Sustainable, Harmonious, and Prosperous World offer a foundation for this work. Applying them to artificial intelligence begins with the recognition that human beings can transform the world we have created. We can choose a different direction. No company, government, or technological competition should convince us that our only choice is to surrender to whatever comes next.
That transformation begins within. We must examine the motives guiding our inventions and investments. Are we seeking to serve? Are we willing to share power? Can we acknowledge a mistake when doing so costs money or prestige? The inner development of those exercising power matters because their values become decisions, and their decisions shape others’ lives.
Healing belongs within this examination. If fear, domination, and the wounds of separation continue to govern our institutions, we risk carrying those patterns into increasingly powerful technologies. Technical safeguards are necessary. So are people and organizations willing to confront their own harmful habits, repair damaged relationships, and accept limits.
We also need a shared vision. Before granting machines greater authority, we must decide together what kind of world that authority should serve. I envision children growing up secure in their identity, languages flourishing, communities restoring their lands and waters, and science helping people meet their needs. That vision gives us a meaningful measure of progress.
Culture must remain a living source of direction. Indigenous Peoples must determine how our knowledge, languages, stories, and cultural expressions are used. Just because something can be collected or copied does not mean permission has been given. Some knowledge carries responsibilities that cannot be understood by separating words from the people, places, and relationships that give them meaning.
Interconnectedness asks us to look beyond a single successful task. A system may meet its assigned target while creating burdens elsewhere. We must consider the people whose work changes, the communities whose resources are used, and those who bear the consequences when something goes wrong. Our teaching that the hurt of one touches the whole human family calls us to include those consequences in our understanding of success.
Unity, participation, and justice must shape decision-making. A small circle of powerful interests cannot rightly determine the future of artificial intelligence. Indigenous Peoples, women, young people, workers, Elders, and affected communities need meaningful authority in decisions that shape their lives. Participation requires the ability to question, influence, withhold consent where appropriate, and obtain a remedy for harm. We must share benefits and responsibilities fairly.
We must also honor our spiritual nature. In my own life, this means remembering our relationship with Wakan Tanka, the Great Mystery, and the sacred worth of every person. No increase in computing power relieves us of the responsibility to practice compassion, humility, truthfulness, and generosity. These qualities must guide the purposes for which we use our tools.
A moral foundation becomes real through conduct. If a system exceeds its permission, its operators should be able to stop it. If harm occurs, affected people should be informed and supported. Independent examination, clear access limits, and responsibility for repair should be built in. A commitment to safety must hold even when honoring it delays a launch or reduces a financial return.
Learning must remain at the center. We need public understanding, honest reporting of failures, and the willingness to change direction when evidence shows danger. We should welcome those who raise difficult questions into the conversation. Our children deserve opportunities to develop their own judgment, creativity, and relationships as they learn to use these tools.
Sustainability requires us to consider the full demands placed on Mother Earth and communities’ capacity to flourish over generations. A technology’s value must include its effects on water, energy, materials, livelihoods, and cultural continuity. Prosperity should strengthen the foundations of life.
Moving toward the positive gives this work purpose. We can direct these tools toward community-led language revitalization, accessible learning, ecological restoration, and cross-cultural cooperation. We can explore how they might support consultation while protecting the confidentiality of our Talking Circles. In each case, the people must retain responsibility for meaning, judgment, and decisions.
Finally, we must embody the change we seek. At Four Worlds, this means holding our own uses of artificial intelligence accountable to the principles we share. We must examine our practices, protect the trust placed in us, and correct our course when necessary. Our example should make our commitments visible.
I welcome human creativity when it serves life. I welcome tools that help us understand one another and put our gifts to work for the common good. Alongside every advance in technical ability, we must deepen our capacity for responsibility.
The measure of artificial intelligence must include the world our grandchildren inherit.
Let us bring our best knowledge and our deepest wisdom into the same circle. Let us ensure that the power we create strengthens the relationships on which our future depends.
With Warm Love and Respect,
Hereditary Chief Phil Lane Jr.
Member-Ihanktonwan Dakota and Chickasaw Nations Chairperson
Compassion Games International
Four Worlds International Institute
Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ — All My Relations.