Jonathan Cruz is working to dismantle colonial data practices and amplify the voices of Pacific Islander (PI) people. Through a series of events aimed at training participants to become “data warriors,” Cruz is reshaping the way Pacific Islander data is collected, visualized, and communicated. His work is centered around cultural empowerment, using indigenous frameworks to challenge the power structures embedded in traditional data governance.
Challenging colonial data practices
Cruz’s approach draws heavily from indigenous thought leaders, such as Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear, Kamuela Enos, and Manulani Aluli-Meyer. These leaders pioneered indigenous data systems and visualization techniques for contemporary data practitioners. These frameworks are designed to ensure that knowledge is viewed holistically, incorporating mind, body, and spirit perspectives. For Cruz, grounding data work in cultural history, ceremonies, and indigenous ways of knowing is key to disrupting harmful colonial systems.
“I really think about making information accessible to people but maintaining a sense of rigor and complexity to it, because I think people have the capacity to understand things. We just have to reach them in ways that they want to participate,” said Cruz.
The journey began with an ambitious event titled “Calling Pacific Islander Data Warriors,” where Cruz invited the NHPI community in Oregon to critically assess how data about their communities is collected and used. Participants explored the widespread erasure of Pacific Islanders from institutional data—an issue made more complex by the diversity within Pacific Islander identities, spanning multiple countries and cultures. The event helped participants articulate their experiences with data injustice and provided a space to connect with others passionate about disrupting the status quo.
“I saw in a lot of their responses that people want a cultural framework to work within, reference or understand. Then they can center those methods and concepts, rather than focusing on learning western dominant understandings of information and data,” Cruz said.
One key outcome of this event was the recognition of the “double vision” many Pacific Islanders hold. They must navigate how outsiders view their communities while maintaining their own cultural perspectives, which often get lost in traditional data systems. Participants began exploring ways to reshape narratives about their communities, focusing on equitable and strengths-based data practices.
Building data warriors for the future
The second event in Cruz’s series focused on equipping participants with skills to understand and visualize data through indigenous frameworks. Participants learned Enos’ “Triple Piko Analysis,” a method that draws on cultural ceremonies and history to inform how data is gathered and used. This event helped individuals reflect on their own data justice journeys and provided new tools for reshaping how Pacific Islanders are represented in data systems.
A key discussion revolved around the frustrations Pacific Islanders face when forced to justify their value to funders who may not fully appreciate or understand their cultural practices. The event underscored how these traditional, often colonial systems reduce Pacific Islander communities to superficial representations. Instead, Cruz encouraged participants to focus on creating data visualizations that highlight the strengths, joys, and cultural richness of Pacific Islander life, going beyond mere numbers and charts to convey the full depth of their experiences.
Cultural empowerment through data justice
Cruz’s work is not just about teaching data visualization skills—it’s about shifting power. His mission is to train Pacific Islanders to become data warriors who can actively critique and reshape the data narratives imposed upon them by colonial systems. By integrating indigenous ways of knowing with practical data tools, he is working with others within this movement to dismantle harmful data systems and advocate for justice and equity in the way Pacific Islander communities are represented.
These events are part of a growing movement within the Pacific Islander community to assert their own voices in data justice spaces, ensuring that data collection practices honor their cultural traditions and histories. Cruz believes that Pacific Islanders must lead the charge in creating more liberatory, just data systems that reflect their lived experiences and values.
“I see a lot of potential for how data use agreements can not only facilitate better quality work, but also improve relationships. All while empowering communities to have more agency and decision making over information that was collected about them,” said Cruz.
As more Pacific Islanders step into the role of data warriors, they are not only challenging existing systems but also creating new, culturally grounded methods that are more reflective of their communities' needs and aspirations. Through Cruz's leadership, a new narrative of empowerment and self-determination is emerging in the fight for data justice.
Looking ahead: Continuing the movement
The journey toward data justice is far from over, but Jon Cruz's work has laid a solid foundation for the future. By bringing indigenous frameworks to the forefront of the conversation and empowering Pacific Islanders to take control of their own narratives, Cruz is paving the way for lasting change in how data about these communities is collected, used, and understood. This movement is not just about data—it’s about reclaiming stories, identities, and histories long marginalized by colonial systems.
Through events like these, Cruz and his community of data warriors are poised to help reshape the future of data justice in a way that is more just, equitable, and culturally resonant for Pacific Islanders everywhere.
Learn more about the Community Leads Cohort Program.
About Jonathan Cruz
Jonathan Cruz currently works at the Multnomah County Health Department as a Program Specialist in the Air Quality program. He is a health educator, educating communities on seasonal air quality hazards such as winter wood burning and wildfire smoke. He is also on the board of Ka ʻAha Lāhui o ʻOlekona (KALO), the Hawaiian Civic Club of Oregon, where he chairs their ecosystems and government relations committees. As an active board member, he manages KALOʻs māla programming, where community members come to maintain connections to Hawaiian culture in the diaspora. He encourages people to learn more about environmental justice through cultural practices and to eat healthy food! He is also a consultant to many community organizations and government projects in Portland, specializing in data sovereignty, data collection, environmental justice, program development and implementation, and community engagement.
Jonathan has been an educator since 2010 when he started working in a loko iʻa (fishpond) on Oʻahu. It was working with the ʻāina and with the community that he found a love for outdoor education and environmental justice. He has a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education and a minor in reading interventions from the University of Portland. Due to a lack of culturally specific social support and mental health support at the university, he did not complete his teaching certification. However, this did not stop him from teaching others in many different roles, from being a retail florist hosting workshops, an animal educator at the Oregon Zoo, a COVID-19 contact tracer, and a vaccine educator. Jonathan uses his ability to connect with others and share information in a personal way to empower people to make connections to health information and to motivate people to change their behaviors.