My partner Rick and I have been working in this field for over 20 years now. Some of the Aboriginal communities we work with have successful tourism projects; others have failed for various reasons. I would suggest that for an indigenous community to start a successful tourism project they need 5 key things:
1. A Champion the projects that are successful have a visionary champion at the helm that is willing to go the distance on a project and see it through from beginning to end. Often communities as a whole say they want to do tourism, but without at least one person to lead the charge, it doesnt happen.
2. Business Skills the champion has to be a developer with solid business skills or else be willing to contract out the work. Starting a tourism venture involves money, not just dreams and someone has to have the ability to pursue and manage large sums of money. Most of our tourism consulting projects are for communities who have decided that they do not have the internal expertise to start a project on their own. The decision to hire outsiders can be hard for communities because they want to be independent and in control of their lives after centuries of colonization but it is possible to blend outsider knowledge about business with insider knowledge about indigenous culture and the land for great outcomes.
3. Good Governance they need a governance framework of some kind. This needs to be thought of at the very BEGINNING of a project, not later down the line. Who is in charge? Who is going to handle the money and make key decisions? Is it a charity or a for-profit business? The Aboriginal community needs to be functioning well internally in terms of their own governance and be able to assert their rights and gain others respect to achieve success in tourism.
4. Governments and Societies that are Supportive of Aboriginal Tourism Cree elders often talk about doing things at the right time. If it is not the right time, the project will not work. This is tricky because what comes first? Some may argue that tourism can help society to evolve but my experience has been that tourism projects will not work in areas where there is intense racism or a lack of communication and cooperation between the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community. In Canada, I would argue that Aboriginal tourism did not really take off until relations with the First Nations and other levels of government improved to the point where it was possible for the First Nations to get funding and become a part of government tourism associations. Outreach and community building may need to happen first before the Aboriginal tourism business can successfully function.
5. A Solid Business/Marketing Plan Good intentions and dreams about saving culture and creating jobs for Aboriginal communities are not enough. There has to be a solid, well thought out business plan. There has to be a market for the product and it has to be sold. The Aboriginal tourism projects that I know of in Canada that are successful cater to both tourism and business travellers in order to pay the bills. Purists may not like this model but these projects have survived when others have not.
My partner Rick and I have been working in this field for over 20 years now. Some of the Aboriginal communities we work with have successful tourism projects; others have failed for various reasons. I would suggest that for an indigenous community to start a successful tourism project they need 5 key things:
1. A Champion the projects that are successful have a visionary champion at the helm that is willing to go the distance on a project and see it through from beginning to end. Often communities as a whole say they want to do tourism, but without at least one person to lead the charge, it doesnt happen.
2. Business Skills the champion has to be a developer with solid business skills or else be willing to contract out the work. Starting a tourism venture involves money, not just dreams and someone has to have the ability to pursue and manage large sums of money. Most of our tourism consulting projects are for communities who have decided that they do not have the internal expertise to start a project on their own. The decision to hire outsiders can be hard for communities because they want to be independent and in control of their lives after centuries of colonization but it is possible to blend outsider knowledge about business with insider knowledge about indigenous culture and the land for great outcomes.
3. Good Governance they need a governance framework of some kind. This needs to be thought of at the very BEGINNING of a project, not later down the line. Who is in charge? Who is going to handle the money and make key decisions? Is it a charity or a for-profit business? The Aboriginal community needs to be functioning well internally in terms of their own governance and be able to assert their rights and gain others respect to achieve success in tourism.
4. Governments and Societies that are Supportive of Aboriginal Tourism Cree elders often talk about doing things at the right time. If it is not the right time, the project will not work. This is tricky because what comes first? Some may argue that tourism can help society to evolve but my experience has been that tourism projects will not work in areas where there is intense racism or a lack of communication and cooperation between the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal community. In Canada, I would argue that Aboriginal tourism did not really take off until relations with the First Nations and other levels of government improved to the point where it was possible for the First Nations to get funding and become a part of government tourism associations. Outreach and community building may need to happen first before the Aboriginal tourism business can successfully function.
5. A Solid Business/Marketing Plan Good intentions and dreams about saving culture and creating jobs for Aboriginal communities are not enough. There has to be a solid, well thought out business plan. There has to be a market for the product and it has to be sold. The Aboriginal tourism projects that I know of in Canada that are successful cater to both tourism and business travellers in order to pay the bills. Purists may not like this model but these projects have survived when others have not.