'Canada could be a world leader'

Indigenous people say their rapidly growing tourism sector needs more support from Ottawa

- JOY SPEARCHIEF-MORRIS

OTTAWA Jenifer Redsky and her four sisters grew up learning the importance of water as members of the Tet'lit Gwichen community of Fort McPherson in the Northwest Territories and Maliseet from New Brunswick.

But it was through standup paddle boarding that Redsky found a new way to connect with water as an urban Indigenous woman living in Toronto.

"It opened up this whole world for me and reminded me of the water that I have on my homelands," she said. "I was really excited to share that with my community and the bigger community."

For the last 12 years, Redsky and her four sisters, Lana, Sharon, Tara and Robyn, have operated Oceah Oceah SUP and Yoga as one of the few Indigenous tourism and recreation companies in Toronto. But operating in an industry mostly filled with non-Indigenous people has been challenging when it comes to visibility, navigating city permits and people's historical stereotypes of Indigenous people.

"When we start our lessons, for example, we start in a circle and talk about the importance of a circle to our culture and coming together. So we're able to share who we are as Indigenous people without it being a powwow," she said.

Before the pandemic, Indigenous tourism was the fastest growing part of the sector across Canada, generating almost $1.9 billion in revenues in 2019. Ontario generated over 30 per cent of that revenue.

Today, revenues - like so many tourist-reliant businesses are down, but according to the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada, currently one in three international visitors is looking for an Indigenous destination, and more than half of domestic travellers looking for the same. Industry leaders say Canada has the potential to be a global leader in Indigenous tourism, but despite recent federal investments, there is still a lack of support.