That history has produced a growing body of ethical guidelines and frameworks — including the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance and various institutional guidelines developed by anthropological and genetic research associations — that attempt to center Indigenous community interests in research involving Indigenous peoples.

The Sitting Bull study’s approach is broadly consistent with these frameworks, and its existence as a well-publicized example of ethically conducted research involving ancestral remains may itself contribute to the development of better norms in the field.

The question of what the scientific community owes to Indigenous communities in exchange for the research access that studying ancestral remains provides is one that does not have a single settled answer.

The Sitting Bull study suggests one model: research conducted with genuine partnership, full and informed consent, and careful attention to how findings are framed and communicated.