This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

The administration of Joe Biden is swapping scientific fact for something rather unscientific, the theories and ideologies of "indigenous" peoples, according to a new investigative report.

The Washington Free Beacon is citing a memo from Biden's Office of Science and Technology Policy that specifically states that such "indigenous knowledge" must be included in "federal research, policies, and decision making."

The memo orders dozens of federal agencies to speak with "spiritual leaders" and exclude "methodological dogma" when making policy.

The investigative report explained, "Federal regulators are to consider the folk wisdom of the Comanche Nation, for instance, just as they consider lab results when trying to determine the pH level of rain. Long relegated to university campuses and fringe activist groups, the idea that native people have a privileged understanding of the physical and metaphysical world is now the official view of the United States government."

The tech office in Biden's White House, in 46 pages, charged, "Recent efforts have been taken at the highest levels of the federal government to highlight the importance of indigenous knowledge to inform federal decision making, improve outcomes, and foster collaboration with tribal nations."

It insists that indigenous knowledge be recognized "as one of the many important bodies of knowledge that contributes to the scientific, technical, social, and economic advancements of the United States, and to our collective understanding of the natural world."

The Free Beacon investigation noted there are nearly 600 federally recognized native tribes in the U.S., so obviously there is "no single definition of indigenous knowledge."

But it "broadly" includes "traditions, stories, and religious rituals passed down orally through generations."

The report continued, "This investigation is based on a Washington Free Beacon review of previously unreported federal documents, hours of recorded lectures by federal officials, and interviews with nearly a dozen experts, many of whom declined to speak publicly due to fear of reprisal. Together, the materials show how a once-fringe theory made its way to the heart of the federal government and shine a light on the Democratic Party’s struggle to balance its commitment to 'the science' with its commitment to 'inclusivity.'"

The investigative report pointed out that Canada started down the path of this ideology some years ago, "often with counterproductive results."

"A 2006 Canadian academic assessment concluded that 'the acceptance of spiritual beliefs as 'knowledge' by governments was dangerous because it could be used to justify any activity, including actions that were environmentally destructive,'" the report said.

One result of that nation's effort to incorporate such "knowledge" resulted in comments on climate change including, "Ice goes up quicker now …. It is different" and "freeze-up is way later."

It noted that Biden also has elevated the tech office to a "cabinet-level" position.

That was, he said, to restore confidence in America's "place on the frontier of science and discovery."

The office supports various campaigns to advance the belief of climate change, and promote artificial intelligence and such, the report said.

Experts told the Free Beacon they were concerned about the use of indigenous religious beliefs as science.

Anna Krylov, of the Science and Engineering division at the University of Southern California, said scientists need to "follow the rules and procedures."

"I'm not thinking about chants or dancing," she told the Free Beacon.

In other statements, the White House also has claimed that science is limited, "given its refusal to incorporate native religious principles," the report said.

At an EPA webinar last year, one participant suggested tribal leaders get paid $100 an hour by the government to help with its rule-making.

The report added, "Frances Widdowson, a Canadian political scientist who was recently fired over her criticisms of left-wing political movements, said the push to include Indigenous Knowledge in the policymaking process reflects 'irrational beliefs' that indigenous people are 'noble savage[s]' who have access to stores of wisdom that are out of reach for white people."