Indigenization without ‘Indigeneity’: Problematizing the Discourse of Indigenization of Social Work in China

While acknowledging mutual alignment in their critique of social work’s dominant Eurocentric lens, indigenous and indigenization of social work have thus far forged separate routes. Indigenous social work predominantly focuses on groups in the settler colonial states of North America and Australia where the term ‘indigenous’ as an official identity category is embraced by groups to signify their a priori territorial claims, traditional way of life, and distinct world views. Indigenization of social work, on the other hand, primarily deals with the effective transmission of praxis in non-western regions. Yet complex linkages between the two exist that impacts the trajectory of indigenization of social work. This article draws upon indigenous theorizing and transdisciplinary learning to examine the neglect of highly charged concepts such as ‘indigenous’ and relationally notions of indigeneity within the social work indigenization discourse in China. Further, grounding the analysis within the liminal sphere of China’s ethnic minorities, particularly the case of Tibet Autonomous Region, it presents a preliminary discussion on potential ways to conceptualize ways forward.