A new program for building an Indigenous Fair
Trade Tourism Association in the Americas

Indigenous Tourism Rights International and our partners, The International Indian Treaty Council's Central America office in Guatemala, announce a new program for building an Indigenous Fair
Trade Tourism Association in the Americas. The announcement was made September 12, 2003 at the Fair Trade Fair and Symposium in Cancun, Mexico.

Fair Trade has assisted Indigenous communities throughout the Americas, particularly in the certification and marketing of agricultural products such as coffee, cocoa, honey, and textiles.
Well developed standards developed by Indigenous Peoples for Indigenous Peoples can provide benefits for community-based tourism.

Tourism Rights, based in St. Paul, Minnesota (USA) and CITI (Guatemala City) are organizing community trainings in Guatemala in November, and will host a Central American fair trade tourism workshop and planning meeting in spring 2004. There is additional coordination on the international level outside of the Americas with NGO groups and Indigenous communities for a conference and interventions on fair trade tourism at the upcoming World Social Forum in Mumbai, India (January 2004).

The initial program is currently in a planning stage, faciliating diverse Indigenous input into forming standards for fair trade tourism which can be certified and implmented on a regional level.

To become a member of the Fair Trade Tourism network, contact Cyndy Harrison at Cyndy@tourismrights.org (English speakers) or Amavilia Simone' at Amavilia@tourismrights.org (Spanish speakers).

For more information contact:
Deborah McLaren
Indigenous Tourism Rights International
366 N. Prior Ave., Suite 205
St. Paul, MN 55104 USA
Tel. 651-644-9984 Fax 651-644-2720
www.tourismrights.org