Winter, StephenSmits, KatherinePeñalba, Maileenita2022-09-202022-09-202022https://hdl.handle.net/2292/61350Democracy requires cultivating a level of citizen competence that facilitates informed and effective political action. Lack of education and access to political representation especially among marginalised groups, however, limits competence. This study examines the development of citizen competence among Indigenous peoples in Cordillera, Northern Philippines. By focusing on the local instead of the national milieu, this study closely examines the context in which citizen competence emerges and evolves in an ethnically diverse community. It analyses the nexus between citizen competence and multiculturalism by assessing the contribution of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA) to competence building. Using both policy analysis and grounded theory, this study reveals that IPRA has provided Indigenous peoples in Cordillera, Northern Philippines the opportunity, ability, and motivation to develop their citizen competence. By promoting greater access to formal education, political representation, and deliberative decision making, IPRA helps build the capacity of Indigenous peoples to make informed choices. The grounded theory offered by this study further reveals the vital components of indigenous citizen competence. These include: 1) promoting cultural integrity, diversity, and the Filipino identity as a core value; 2) exercising environmental stewardship as a core duty; and 3) developing autonomy and selfgovernment as a core strategy for competence building. The study also highlights issues in the implementation of IPRA and its policy directives including the lack of harmony among multiple legal orders in the Philippines. By using grounded theory, indigenous knowledge and experience are given due theoretical consideration in this study. The resulting grounded theory that amplifies indigenous voices contributes to the inclusion of both diversity and marginality as critical dimensions of competence research.Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htmThesis2022-08-22Copyright: The authorhttp://purl.org/eprint/accessRights/OpenAccess