Episode 30 - Can We Do Tourism Well? ‘Discovery’, ‘Exploration’, and Different Forms of Rejuvenation with Dr. Alexis Bunten

In this episode of The ReMembering and ReEnchanting Podcast with host Sara Jolena Wolcott and guest Dr. Alexis Bunten, we engage with questions around tourism and traveling. We

• Start with history, the colonial gaze, and its impact on today's tourism and travel ‘explorations’
• Look at the dangers of "Disneylandification"
• Consider both 'sides' (the tourist and the native) experience of cultural tourism
• Go into some basic (but often not followed) things to consider when you are the one doing the tourism/traveling
• Alexis gives some suggestions for native-led tourist organizations

Timestamps:

1:37 - Introduction to Alexis Bunten
5:48 - What Alexis learned from tracing the history of tourism and how she sees those histories shape tourism today
15:50 - What’s the difference between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation?
19:08 - What does it mean to “Explore”?
24:03 - Disneylandification vs. Deep Cultural Learning
29:44 - Tourism today vs. tourism 20 years ago.
46:38 -  How can people engage in the native-owned tourist experience?
55:00 -  How can tourist guides facilitate visitors in connecting with the local culture?

Books written/co-written by Dr. Alexis:
So, How Long Have You Been Native?: Life as an Alaska Native Tour Guide
Indigenous Tourism Movements

Join Bioneers in their next gathering on March 28-30, 2024 in Berkeley, CA

You might be interested in our previous episodes with Bioneers' co-founder Nina Simons (Lifting Up Culture Doctors) and a recent speaker at Bioneers, Erin Matiriki Carr (ReMembering the Sovereign Forest).