An early-stage checklist for ethical remote research collaboration

Start relationships before finalising the project

Identify the relevant organisations and people through appropriate local channels and allow time for them to assess the idea. Do not treat a funding deadline as a reason to compress consultation. Ask whether the research question is useful, who should be involved and whether work should proceed at all.

Agree decision-making, payment, roles and communication in writing. Consent is an ongoing process, not a signature collected on arrival. Use current institutional ethics requirements and community protocols for the actual project; this checklist does not replace them.

Plan data, outputs and return of benefit together

Discuss what will be recorded, where it will be stored, who can access it and how sensitive cultural or location information will be protected. Agree ownership, attribution, review and future reuse, recognising that different kinds of knowledge may require different arrangements.

Budget for accessible reporting and agreed outputs, not only travel and analysis. Return results in useful forms and allow corrections or concerns to be raised. A publication is not automatically a benefit to the people who made the work possible.

• Engage through appropriate local channels early.
• Allow time for questions, refusal and governance.
• Agree roles, payment and ongoing consent.
• Document data access, attribution and reuse.
• Budget for useful local outputs and follow-up.