Commentary
Dara Healy
Culture matters
DARA AND HALY
“The collision of two trends – globalization and the experience economy – has ignited a new travel zeitgeist (mood or zeitgeist) with cultural curiosity at its heart. This is the ‘new culture economy’. The phenomenon has a profound impact on human interactions and definitions of cultural exploration and represents a tremendous commercial opportunity.”
– Kris Naudits, Culture Trip
THIS WEEK, two of the world’s largest industries – travel and the environment – convened to connect practitioners, members of the business community and supporters. TT was represented at both the World Travel Market in London and the Climate Summit in Egypt.
As we engage with the rest of the world as a country with a wealth of cultural heritage to offer, what conversations should we be having about the impact of global tourism trends and the effects of climate change on our culture?
These concepts are not as far-fetched as you might think. Analyzes of climate instability generally focus on areas such as agriculture, human settlements, and the availability of water resources. However, keep in mind that for several years we have been, quite literally, fighting the ocean to maintain our coastlines.
For example, it is said that the land near the Sea Temple and surrounding areas should be raised to save this aspect of our cultural heritage. And in Gran Chemin, Moruga, the statue of St. Peter on Saut d’Eau beach has tilted closer to the beach as a result of erosion. The statue is always a must see for its sheer size and connection to the community.
For me, this example of environmental change is particularly disturbing, as I have been part of a number of tours exploring indigenous and African heritage in that part of the country.
The increased frequency and intensity of destructive weather patterns is certainly exacerbated by our poor drainage systems, indiscriminate clearing of hillsides for shelter, and other counterproductive types of human activity.
Researchers at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) claim that our nation will face “increased occurrences of tropical storms, coastal flooding, a rise in sea levels and increased risk of drought. This deterioration of the country’s coastline and major tourist attractions could be detrimental to the country’s tourism industry and its overall contribution to the economy.”
Thus, even if we become more harmonious with nature, challenges to our heritage will still remain. So how can we protect our monuments, heritage sites and physical representations of our shared cultural heritage? How can we ensure that visitors have a clear understanding of our position on cultural preservation and protection? And how can we ensure that our festivals, from goat races to Ramleela, Hosay and Carnival, operate in a way that respects the earth and is also sustainable and profitable?
More and more, travelers are interested in making a real connection with another country. Our nation is steeped in ancestral rituals, community traditions and cultural practices, offering limitless opportunities for what the UN World Tourism Organization describes as building partnerships with communities for sustainable and profitable tourism. This means that in order to answer the questions of how to preserve our cultural heritage, we must develop standards and guidelines that are specific to our cultural reality, in consultation with the creative and cultural sectors.
For example, it is not acceptable to simply touch or attempt to beat an African drum. Or people visiting our beaches should have their own litter bags to ensure they leave no evidence they’ve been there. Carnival costume makers need to switch to designing with materials that won’t ultimately harm our fragile ecosystems, negatively impacting our coral or fish stocks.
As a community-based tour guide from Hawaii commented, “Locals have a responsibility to welcome visitors in a way that is appropriate. In contrast, visitors have a responsibility to be aware that their destination is one’s home, neighborhood one’s, one’s community.”
Loss of our heritage due to environmental degradation is another real concern. Digitization and other technological solutions would be important to ensure that future generations are able to experience the Temple in the Sea, the statue of St. Peter or one of the Orisha courtyards that is over 100 years old.
We will delve another time into this topic of digitizing our cultural assets, but the shifting sands of our islands require that we not wait too long to have this conversation at the national level.
Dara E Healy is a performance artist and founder of the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN
