Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 4, 1 April 2013 — Akana selected as Pacific Representative for AIANTA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Akana selected as Pacific Representative for AIANTA

/A no'ai kakou... On /\ Feb. 12, the board of directors for the /^^^\ American Indian / \Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANĪA) approved my nomination as one of two Paeihe Representatives. This is a great opportunity for all Native Hawaiians to network with American Indians and Alaska Natives to develop and implement programs that will help our

communities build for the future while sustaining and strengthening our eultural legacy. AIANĪA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit association of Native communities and businesses that were organized in 1999 to advance tourism in territories under the control of Native peoples. The association is made up of member tribes from six regions: Eastern, Plains, Midwest, Southwest, Paeihe and Alaska. AIANTA's mission is to define, introduce, grow and sustain American Indian and Alaska Native tourism that honors and sustains tribal traditions and values. AIANĪA serves as voice and resource for its constituents in advancing tourism, assists tribes in creating infrastructure and capacity, and provides technical assistance, training and educational resources to tribes, tribal organizations and tribal members. AIANTA also serves as the liaison between Indian Country and govemmental and private entities for the development, growth and sustenance of Indian Country tourism. INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, international visitors spent a record $14.3 hillion in the United States in August 2012. Eaeh March, AIANĪA sponsors an expansive American Indian Pavilion at ITB Berlin, the world's leading travel and trade show. This provides tribal tourism departments the opportunity to showcase their programs and tour packages to the European tourism industry. AIANTA booth participants have made invaluable contacts with international travel organizations, media and tour operators. They were featured in the Brand USA Discover America Pavilion, attracting large crowds of participants and hundreds of internahonal travel media representatives. More

than 172,032 trade professionals and consumers participated in ITB 2012. PUBLIC LANDS OUTREACH Every major national park or monument in the American West has a relationship to a significant Native sacred site. The upcoming National Parks Service centennial anniversary in 2016 affords Native peoples the opportunity to raise public consciousness on

issues such as cultural resource protections and ancestral use of parklands, as well as to participate in the benefits arising from increased visitation to the national parks during the centennial. In 2011, AIANĪA entered into a partnership with the National Park Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to ensure full, uncensored tribal participation in NPS eentennial interpretations, education, tourism and other programming efforts. ANNUAL CONFERENCE The annual American Indian Tourism Conference, co-hosted by various Native American tribes in their homelands, is designed to share knowledge, experience and best practices from both tribal and nontribal tourism programs around the United States. Eaeh conference features mobile workshops, networking events and presentations from experts in the travel and tourism industry. I see many similarities in the missions of both OHA and AIANĪA. We both serve as the voice and as a resource for our Native constituents. We also serve as a muehneeded liaison between our respective Native conmiunities and governmental and private entities for the promotion, growth and development of eeonomie opportunities and programs. I look forward to working closely with AIANĪA over the next few years to help our beneficiaries build for their future while sustaining and strengthening our cultural legacy. Aloha Ke Akua.B Interested i.n Hawaiian issues and OHA? Please visit nry website at rowenaakana.org for more infonnation or email me at rowenaa@oha.org.

Rūwena Akana TrustEE, At-largE