museums embrace Web 2.0 platforms as a tool for shifting from a position of authority

to that of "mediator." Regarding specifically indigenous participatory projects, he points

out,

     What any museum professional involved in such a collaboration will tell you
     is that these projects challenge all sorts of conscious and unconscious
     institutional assumptions, sometimes about the meaning of things, but also
     just what the facts really are and what kinds of documentation have real
     validity. What takes place is a new, negotiated meaning, or a multiplicity of
     meanings in contrast to one another. (Spock 2009, 9)

Daniel Spock posits that the application of Web 2.0 technology in museum/Native

collaborations is necessary for museums to grow in their effort toward embracing the

role of community stewards. I see collaborative wikis as a supportive tool for assisting

museums in their enhancement of their civic engagement.

      As I conclude this project, I am left with many questions regarding the future

implications of wiki projects, especially regarding the wiki's influence on the alteration of

museum authority, its impact on the museum's Native relationships, and effects on the

museum's relationship with the public. What would it mean for the museum's role in

society if these institutions maintained active wiki conversations with each indigenous

community that their collections represent? How would this affect the role of the curator

and the registrar? Will this approach prove useful for end-users as they access the

information online, or at on-site exhibitions? The museums' use of wikis can enhance

the public's participation in the preservation of their own cultural heritage, and is a

potentially promising means of increasing indigenous voice in the museum. The wiki's

contribution in turn helps position the museum to become more clearly recognized by

the public as integral to the continuity of cultural heritage.