The power of stories and song

Sat in a quiet darkened hall in a luxury London hotel, CMW’s Catie Owen listened to the mesmerising drumbeats and song of indigenous drummer Matricia Bauer, who took centre stage. Ahead of the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Day in Canada, held this year on 30 September, Destination Canada invited 20 event professionals to learn more about how Indigenous communities interact with the country’s MICE industry. The event was part of Destination Canada’s sustainability plan for business events, launched at IMEX Frankfurt 2022. Matricia Bauer, also called Iskatochitawachiy (She who moves mountains), is a member of the Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation. She is also a survivor of the Sixties Scoop – which saw thousands of Indigenous children in Canada taken from their own families to be raised by non-Indigenous families. Bauer introduced the gathering to her initiative – Warrior Women. The collective and Indigenous drumming group allows Matricia to educate audiences on reconciliation, cultural tourism and MICE, and the full benefits of cultural sustainability. Matricia spoke with Catie Owen in more depth about experiences and teachings. Catie Owen: Can you tell us about your work in cultural tourism? Matricia Bauer: Cultural tourism is really important in Canada, simply because the Indigenous story hasn’t always been told by Indigenous Peoples. Because it hasn’t been told by Indigenous Peoples it has been misrepresented; it’s been represented inaccurately and from a colonised point of view. I do cultural tourism in Jasper, Alberta, but it has taken me all over the world. It’s my privilege to be able to share my story, and in doing that it helps cultural sustainability by maintaining our story and our culture. By telling my story to people, it allows people to understand who I am. If people understand who I am, maybe they won’t do the things that they have done to our people in the past. I talk about my stories; the beautiful ways that I have healed through ceremony; and how I’ve raised my children. By doing all of that I’ve had the privilege to share it with people from all over the world and support myself through tourism. CO: How are Indigenous Peoples currently overlooked and neglected by the MICE industry, and how can we improve? MB: Often Indigenous Peoples are put at the forefront of events in a position where they’re entertaining. But that’s why it’s so important to hear their voice, ask questions, and for them to be able to tell their story. When I tell my story, people learn to know the person that I am. That establishes communication, which then establishes relationships. By Indigenising myself and decolonising my spaces, I’m increasing my ability to create relationships. CO: What are the benefits of cultural sustainability for both local communities and the industry? MB: A lot of Indigenous Peoples aren’t at the same level economically. For the average Canadian teenager graduating at 17 or 18, the national average of graduates is 83%. But in Indigenous populations, 53% graduate. How do we lessen that disparity? Cultural sustainability gives people economic reconciliation. It gives them the resources to sustain themselves economically and decrease some of those disparities. A lot of Indigenous Peoples live in areas that don’t have lots of services, access to jobs, internet, or education. By decreasing this disparity and allowing people to economically prosper, it gives them tools to change for the better. They can get educated and create spaces in places where they can be economically viable. It also gives them hope. When I go into schools and young Indigenous Peoples see that I can make a living by telling my story, even if it’s a hard one, they have hope. That’s pretty a powerful thing to be able to share your story about.

CO: How can workplaces be encouraging better cultural sustainability, for their employees and their culture? MB: If a place’s Indigenous population is 20%, look at your corporate boardrooms and see where that 20% of the population is within the industry. Additionally, see if you even have representation of Indigenous Peoples. If we want the Indigenous story to be told, it needs to be led by Indigenous Peoples. There is nothing about us, without us. CO: How should we do cultural sustainability correctly? MB: Right now, with Canada’s story being heard on an international level with the children being discovered [in recent years, thousands of Indigenous children’s graves have been found on the sites of residential schools] there’s a big push for reconciliation. And this has been achieved in several different ways. For instance, Calgary has done a really good job in completely revamping the Heritage Park; they’ve brought an Indigenous focus to it. The curriculum in Alberta has been revamped to include Indigenous stories. Clearly, there’s been a shift in thinking about those places – people want to be conscious of the spaces that they’re occupying. They’re also realising that those places are treaty lands and, when acknowledging those spaces, realising that there was a relationship with Indigenous Peoples before. It’s important for everybody to acknowledge the dirt under their feet. We have a saying in our culture: we stand on the bones of our ancestors. Along these lines, the land acknowledgements [recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ traditional territory by the Canadian Government, often when a public event is taking place on that land] have been hugely important. CO: When we include Indigenous Peoples in our events and industry, what should we take away from their stories? MB: Learn that each Indigenous person has their own story. There are 82 different nations, such as the Inuit and the mixed race of the Métis, who are all culturally diverse and different. There are thousands of stories out there to listen to. Additionally, there’s often a danger of lumping every Indigenous person under one umbrella – but they’re very diverse and different. Cover Image: Matricia Bauer explains the imagery on her drum