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In this article, the author seeks a middle path through which to traverse the "tricky ground" of Indigenous research; a middle path that will hopefully find "in-between spaces" open to new epistemological pathways, through which new voices and ideas can be heard within the social sciences and, in particular, within geography. This middle path would afford space through which to include his own perspective and acknowledge that he looks at the world through a pair of tinted spectacles, but it will more importantly include and acknowledge past and present research companions and friends. He hopes he can help create this middle path by incorporating a myriad of voices and narrative forms to show how Indigenous geography can move closer to that which it studies. This article begins with the author's own story as a mixed-race Native American, a geographer, and an academic. The story is one about his research work in Aotearoa (New Zealand), what motivated this research, how he has attempted to construct an indigenist methodological framework for this research, and how his own Indigenous identity has influenced his research relationships. Because the research the author discusses in this article took place in Aotearoa, he starts by giving a "mihimihi" or genealogical introduction. He concludes by reflecting on his successes and failures in negotiating the tricky ground of Indigenous research. (Contains 41 notes.)

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-5871.2007.00442.x Byline: JAY T. JOHNSON (1), BRIAN MURTON (2) Keywords: Indigenous science; social constructions of nature; culture-nature divide; place; Gregory Cajete Abstract: Abstract Since the earliest days of the European Enlightenment, Western people have sought to remove themselves from nature and the 'savage' non-European masses. This distancing has relied upon various intellectual techniques and theories. The social construction of nature precipitated by Enlightenment thinking separated culture from nature, culture being defined as civilised European society. This separation has served to displace the Native voice within the colonial construction of Nature. This separation has also served as one thread in the long modern 'disenchantment' of Westerners and nature, a 'disenchantment' described so adeptly by Adorno and Horkheimer (1973). Unfortunately though, this displacement is not only a historical event. The absence of modern Native voices within discussions of nature perpetuates the colonial displacement which blossomed following the Enlightenment. In his book entitled, Native Science, Gregory Cajete describes Native science as 'a lived and creative relationship with the natural world ... [an] intimate and creative participation [which] heightens awareness of the subtle qualities of a place' (2000, 20). Perhaps place offers a 'common ground' between Western and Indigenous thought; a 'common ground' upon which to re/write the meta-narrative of Enlightenment thought. This paper will seek to aid in the re/placement of modern Native voices within constructions of nature and seek to begin healing the disenchantment caused through the rupture between culture and nature in Western science. Author Affiliation: (1)Department of Anthropology and Geography, University of Nebraska at Lincoln, P.O. Box 880368, Lincoln, NE 68588-0368 USA. (2)Department of Geography, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, 2424 Maile Way, Honolulu, HI 96822 USA. Article History: Received 20 September 2006; Revised 10 January 2007; Accepted 31 January 2007 Article note: (*) Corresponding author. Email: jjohnson18@unl.edu

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-5871.2007.00441.x Byline: JAY T. JOHNSON (1), GARTH CANT (2), RICHARD HOWITT (3), EVELYN PETERS (4) Author Affiliation: (1)Department of Anthropology and Geography, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, P.O. Box 880368, Lincoln, NE 68588-0368, USA. (2)Department of Geography, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch, New Zealand. (3)Department of Human Geography, Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia. (4)Department of Geography, University of Saskatchewan, 9 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada S7N 5A5. Article note: (*) Corresponding author. Email: jjohnson18@unl.edu