Native tribes in Maine aim to generate economic impact around cultural tourism - Mainebiz

While Maine's tourism-related businesses work to rebound, planning is underway to grow a new branch of the industry.

The Wabanaki Cultural Tourism Initiative is setting out to create the first year-round, multifaceted infrastructure for tourism involving Maine's Native peoples.

The goal of the initiative, led by Four Directions Development Corp., is to foster by 2030 a thriving tourism economy with the five Wabanaki tribes in Maine — the Maliseet, Mi'kmaq, Passamaquoddy at Indian Township, Passamaquoddy at Pleasant Point, and Penobscot, according to a news release.

Four Directions is a Native community development financial institution in Orono.

To help develop the program, the Maine Office of Tourism awarded a $150,000 grant to Four Directions.

"The awarding of this grant is a meaningful step in a collaborative effort to develop a cultural tourism plan that showcases the tribal communities in Maine and develops tourism products that share the rich heritage and contemporary culture of the Wabanaki Confederacy," Steve Lyons, director of the Maine Office of Tourism, said in the release.

The grant will be used to host a Wabanaki Tourism Summit in Maine, to host several community information-gathering events, and to enroll Four Directions staff and tribal members in the Cultural Heritage Tourism Certificate Program at the George Washington University School of Business in Washington, D.C.

The certificate program is a partnership with the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association. The program provides tourism entrepreneurs and community leaders with tools to identify and develop assets for attracting visitors to a region. Four Directions staff and tribal members also plans to work with George Washington University on the planning and facilitation of the Wabanaki Cultural Tourism Plan.

Emerging tourism theme

The initiative stems from a comprehensive survey conducted by Four Directions with the tribes related to economic and community development, Charlene Virgilio, executive director of Four Directions Development Corp., told Mainebiz.

Part of the survey focused on learning what areas the tribes wanted to collaborate on.

"Cultural tourism emerged as one of those areas," she said.

Following the survey, the state in 2019 held the first Native American Tribal Summit to begin the discussion of a long-term plan for Native cultural tourism. 

The effort was slowed by the pandemic, but picked up steam with the award earlier this year of a $224,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Native Americans, Virgilio said.

In October, Four Directions hired Matthew Lewis as its Wabanaki program director to lead the initiative. Lewis has put together an organizing team that includes delegates from each tribal community.

"Our job is to carry this initiative forward, engage each of the communities and get their interest in what they want to see done and how to do it right," said Lewis.

Comprehensive plan

Currently, Virgilio said, most Wabanaki tourism programs are developed at the individual tribal level.

Examples of existing Wabanaki programs include the Aroostook Band of Micmacs' annual Mawiomi of Tribes, a gathering that features dancing, drums, music, vendors and more in Caribou.

The Abbe Museum Indian Market in Bar Harbor includes Native American artists and performers from over 40 nations. The new initiative seeks to develop a comprehensive Wabanaki tourism strategic plan.

"We're looking to bring them together in a cohesive way," said Virgilio. "We're looking at what we're doing now and how they can complement each other."

From a general standpoint, she added, the initiative is viewed as a potential spur for development related to hospitality, such as hotels and restaurants, in Wabanaki communities.

"We see small business development activity coming out of this," she said. "And further down the road, we're hoping it will lead to workforce development related to hospitality."

She added, "This is the first of its kind in Maine. We want it to be sustainable and have longevity."