Lessons from Indigenous Tourism for a Regenerative Future

Abstract

The tourism industry is often criticized for its rampant overdevelopment of destinations, and the exploitation of vulnerable populations. While this is true, the industry is also capable of providing economic diversification while protecting ecosystems and perpetuating local cultures. These “new” models for tourism are being led, in a large part, by Indigenous communities whose business models are based in traditional values for community and stewarding the environment. These businesses provide jobs that allow tribal members to “stay home” and steward natural resources, while being compensated to perpetuate and share their cultures. Increasingly, non-Native peoples are coming to understand the value of aligning business models with deep connections to place, and respect for all living things. These leaders understand that humans need to mitigate the capitalist practices that have led to the climate change crisis and global ecocide. Join Alexis Bunten, author of “‘So, how long have you been Native?’ Life as an Alaska Native Tour Guide,” (University of Nebraska Press) and “Indigenous Tourism Movements” (University of Toronto Press) for an in-depth exploration of Indigenous leadership in the regenerative tourism space to learn best practices for increasing the quadruple bottom line (people, planet, profit and purpose) via tourism in Southeast Alaska and beyond. Alexis, a shareholder of Bristol Bay Native Corporation and Paug-Vik Village Corporation, has researched and worked in the Native-led tourism industry since 1997. She currently lives in Monterey California, and owns WAQAA LLC, which is dedicated to forwarding transformational travel through cross cultural experiences. She has taught at UCLA, Humboldt State University, University of Victoria, Wellington, and Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne University, as well as held postdoctoral positions at University of California Berkeley and Santa Cruz.