Through our partnerships with The American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA), the George Washington University (GW) International Institute of Tourism Studies, the Pamplin College of Business at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), and various Native Hawaiian Organizations (NHO), OIED supports indigenous tourism through our NATIVE Act implementation.
Information
| Project | State/Region | University Partner | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIANTA "American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association" | New Mexico | N/A | In 2019, AIANTA was designated a coordinating partner, and charged with fulfillment of section 4353(d) of the Act, which calls for an “organization or entity to serve as a facilitator between the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce and the Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations” in order to “identify areas where technical assistance is needed through consultations” and to “provide a means for the delivery of technical assistance…” AIANTA coordinates consultations among DOI, Commerce, and indigenous populations to identify technical assistance needed to support the NATIVE Act. These efforts include providing a means to deliver technical assistance and identifying opportunities to collaborate. AIANTA's efforts integrate federal tourism assets to strengthen native tourism opportunities, cultivate Native American tourism and enhance tourism branding. |
| Historic Preservation Field Training through Stewardship Projects with NHOs | Hawaiʻi | Historic Hawaiʻi Foundation | Build capacity of NHOs for historic preservation to ensuring that their traditional cultural stories and places are documented, preserved and shared with visitors |
| Restore and Utilize ʻOiwi Spatial Data | Hawaiʻi | Edith Kanakaʻole Foundation | Enhance visitor experience at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park by improving interpretive and educational products through the application of Native Hawaiian foundational knowledge. |
| COVID-19 Customer Service Training for Native Hospitality Professionals | Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota | GW and Virginia Tech | To support hospitality workers’ re-entry into the workforce, GW and Virginia Tech organized customer service trainings for Native hospitality professionals across North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana. |
| Native Entrepreneurs Project | Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota | GW and Virginia Tech | In collaboration with GW, Virginia Tech piloted a project to support native entrepreneurs. The training was focused on developing virtual tourism experiences for commercial purposes. |
| Tribal Tourism Development in Montana Project (TTDMP) | Montana | GW and Virginia Tech | TTDMP is supporting the development of culturally appropriate, sustainable tourism in eight Montana tribal communities. It's working on developing a regional tribal tourism collaboration through the Montana Tribal Tourism Alliance. |
| COVID-19 Operational Guidance | Montana | Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech compiled a comprehensive set of tourism/hospitality guidelines for safe operations, which included a reference sheet with guidelines for Native lodging, camping, restaurants, retail, and attraction establishments. |
| Blackfeet Tourism | Montana | Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech is working on a pilot project with the Blackfeet Nation that includes working to develop an Economic Strategic Implementation Plan for the tribe and a Blackfeet Native Tourism website. |
| Indigenous Tourism Forum of the Americas | North America and South America | GW | The Organization of American States (OAS) and GW, in cooperation with Indian Affairs, hosted the first-ever Indigenous Tourism Forum of the Americas. |
| Indigenous Tourism Collaborative | North America and South America | GW | The initiative, established by OAS, GW, and Indian Affairs, will build an indigenous tourism and resource network to inform and support the development of a sustainable indigenous tourism industry. |
| North Dakota Native Tourism Alliance (NDNTA) | North Dakota | GW | NDNTA is a regional tourism development and management network of the five federally recognized tribes of North Dakota. It plans to market and sell cultural tours in collaboration with the five tribes. |
| Tourism Product Development Studio | North Dakota | GW | GW conducted an eight-week online educational series on tourism topics like markets, pricing, and developing operating guidelines. Standing Rock Sioux Nation, Spirit Lake Nation, and the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians developed new tour packages after participating in the series. |
| Virtual Tourism Experience Training Series | North Dakota | GW and Virginia Tech | GW, in partnership with Virginia Tech, trained Native cultural entrepreneurs to develop and launch live online tourism experiences on platforms such as Airbnb and Eventbrite. |
| South Dakota Native Tourism Alliance (SDNTA) | South Dakota | GW | The network of representatives from tribal nations and federal, local, and state governments aims to develop indigenous as a catalyst for economic growth and has developed comprehensive tourism plan. |
| Virtual Tourism Experience Training | South Dakota | GW | GW provided basic training to tribes and tribal members on how to develop virtual tours and marketing videos. |
| Tribal Tourism Development in Virginia Project (TTDVP) | Virginia | Virginia Tech | TTDVP seeks to help federally recognized tribes identify indigenous tourism opportunities. |
| Tourism and Economic Development Workshop | Virginia | Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech hosted an event with representatives from all seven tribes on their Richmond campus. Representatives from Indian Affairs and several other government agencies gave presentations, and breakout sessions were held with each of the tribes to determine their specific tourism and economic development resources and needs. |
| Hotel Feasibility Analysis and Market Study for Investment Planning for the Chickahominy Tribe | Virginia | Virginia Tech | A strategy for a tourism investment was developed and approved by the tribal council. The tribe acquired land and is now in the process of setting up a campground that will be used for tourism activities. |
| Tourism Assessment Strategy for the Nansemond Indian Nation | Virginia | Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech is working with the Nanesmond Nation to develop a strategy for tourism development as part of their economic development plan. |
| Grant Writing Seminars | Virginia | Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech conducted three grant writing seminars for tribes in Virginia. This training provided a step-by-step program for identifying possible grant funding opportunities and discussed how to develop winning proposals. |
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1849 C Street, N.W., Room 4152
Washington, DC 20240
