The Organization of American States and the George Washington University International Institute of Tourism Studies in collaboration with the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs have organized a virtual gathering, October 12th through 16th, that will give Indigenous, business, and government leaders a platform to explore the ways in which tourism can drive economic recovery and sustainable development. Participants will meet for five days via Zoom webinar to exchange experiences, share knowledge, re-trace ancient trade networks and re-establish connections.
For millennia, Indigenous peoples engaged in trade and commerce throughout what is now known as the Americas.
This vast and complex exchange network that produced food, medicine, ceremony and knowledge, evolved over time and can only be authentically shared by the Indigenous people whose ancestors lived it.
Unfortunately, this history is largely left out of the history of the Americas as it is widely shared today.
Tourism has an important role to play…it can provide Indigenous communities with economic opportunity while allowing visitors to learn about the Indigenous experience.
But because Indigenous communities have limited access to the resources needed to develop, manage, sustain and control tourism on their own terms, they’re largely left out of the conversation
Indigenous communities using their own cultures and traditions to shape their economic future and share it in a way that enhances quality of life and cultural expression is what this Indigenous Tourism Collaborative is all about.
We are creating the framework for a network of Indigenous representatives to join forces to discuss, share, and inform us and other resource providers and industry experts on how to better support the development of tourism on their terms as they take control of their own narratives.
The recent coronavirus pandemic has not only brought the tourism industry to a halt around the world, but it’s exposed the vulnerability of Indigenous communities —their lack of infrastructure and access to resources to prevent transmission of the virus and care for the sick. The resulting lock-down of many communities is a means of self-protection and cultural survival that indigenous peoples have been practicing for years.
Because so many Indigenous communities have a deep knowledge of and dependence on their environment, these natural resources are helping to sustain them now, just as they have historically, particularly when access to commercial food resources are impacted. Yet, for those Indigenous communities that have been displaced from their homelands and access to their indigenous food resources, food sovereignty is a goal of paramount importance.
The Indigenous Tourism Forum of the Americas was designed to provide a platform for community leaders, policy-makers, and business owners to share their experiences to learn from one another and to better understand how to drive change through tourism. The George Washington University, International Institute of Tourism Studies reached out to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Organization of American States to discuss the idea of building a network of Indigenous development organizations and leaders along with a network of tourism industry and government resources to identify how we can better identify the issues and needs of Indigenous development and the resources necessary to address them.
The forum was intended to be the first step in an Indigenous Tourism Collaborative, long before COVID-19 appeared. Now we see this effort as needed more than ever—to bring together Indigenous people from across the Americas to re-establish their historic connections, drive understanding, and create new opportunities for people everywhere.
Who better than the First Peoples of this hemisphere to lead the discussion of true sustainability for future development in the tourism industry and help define the resources and guidelines to achieve it?
We are also inviting tourism industry representatives and government resource representatives including academia, non-governmental organizations, development organizations, and others to advise and be advised on our initiative.
To learn more and to register for the forum, please visit www.indigenoustourismforum.org
