Indigenous Heritage

History shows that travellers sought to experience the unfamiliar and exotic cultures and traditions of Indigenous peoples, with early examples of Indigenous tourism in the United States, Canada, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand and countries throughout Asia and Latin America. Similarly, contemporary travellers demonstrate a desire to seek out opportunities to experience Indigenous peoples and their cultures. Thus, we are witnessing worldwide growth in the awareness of, and interest in, Indigenous cultures, traditions, histories and knowledges.

Engagement in the tourism sector is regularly advocated for Indigenous peoples because of the socio-economic opportunities it provides; however, there are a range of cultural benefits including the maintenance, rejuvenation and/or preservation of Indigenous cultures, knowledges and traditions for Indigenous peoples who choose tourism as a vehicle to showcase their cultures. Consequently, tourism is regularly acknowledged as a means for facilitating the sustainability of tangible and intangible Indigenous cultural heritage including languages, stories, art, dance, rituals and customs. Importantly, however, the history of Indigenous peoples’ engagement in tourism has provided a range of examples of the threats to Indigenous culture that can accrue as a result of tourism (i.e., cultural degradation, commercialisation and commodification, authenticity and identity, among others). This book presents an exploration of the intersection between tourism and Indigenous culture.

The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Heritage Tourism.

Author Biography

Michelle Whitford is Associate Professor and Dean (Learning and Student Outcomes) in the Office of the Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor at Griffith University. Her research expertise is in the field of policy, planning, sustainable development and management of Indigenous tourism and events. Whitford’s expertise includes co-coordinating projects in the area of Indigenous tourism and events with a focus on supply and demand, capacity development, entrepreneurship, authenticity and commodification and management. She has co-coordinated research projects for various organisations including the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre, the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Studies, Indigenous Business Australia, National Environmental Science Program and numerous Australian Federal State and Local Government agencies.

Lisa Ruhanen is Professor in Tourism and the Director of Education for the UQ Business School, The University of Queensland. She has undertaken more than 30 academic and consultancy research projects in Australia and overseas in the areas of Indigenous tourism, sustainable tourism and policy, planning and governance. Lisa has more than 100 academic publications and in 2017 she and colleagues co-edited a book on Indigenous Tourism: Cases from Australia and New Zealand. Lisa teaches undergraduate and postgraduate courses in sustainable and responsible tourism, ethics and tourism in developing countries. She has worked closely with the United Nations World Tourism Organization over the last decade and is currently an Advisory Board member and auditor for the UNWTO’s TedQual accreditation program.