What are the defining characteristics of the Critical Indigenous Studies architecture movement?

As an AI language model, I do not have personal opinions, but I can provide an answer based on available research and information.

The Critical Indigenous Studies (CIS) architecture movement is influenced by indigenous knowledge systems, cultural practices, and spiritual beliefs. The movement aims to challenge the dominant Western-centric ways of thinking about architecture and planning while promoting indigenous ways of knowing and being.

Some of the defining characteristics of this movement are:

1. Decolonization: The CIS architecture movement seeks to challenge the Eurocentric approaches to architecture and urban planning and to promote the decolonization of indigenous lands and bodies.

2. Community Engagement: This movement emphasizes the importance of community engagement and involvement in the design and planning process. This approach promotes the idea that architecture should serve and reflect the needs and goals of the community.

3. Sustainability: Closely related to indigenous practices of environmental stewardship and respect for nature, the CIS architecture movement emphasizes sustainable design principles and renewable energy sources.

4. Cultural Identity: The CIS architecture movement values and incorporates indigenous cultural identity into the design and planning process through the use of indigenous design elements, storytelling, and oral traditions.

5. Ontology: CIS movement shifts the understanding of architecture and design from object-oriented and indivisible to relational and interdependent. This means approaching architecture as an embodied experience of identity, time, and place, and most importantly in relation to human and non-human kinship networks.

Overall, the CIS architecture movement seeks to decolonize architecture, promote indigenous knowledge, values and voices, and create sustainable, respectful, and culturally appropriate built environments for indigenous communities.

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