JET SETTER
A city's airport can say a lot about its culture and values to arriving passengers, and YVR'S MARY POINT wants visitors to feel “a sense of a home, a sense of belonging.”
The airport's manager of Indigenous relations (who identifies as a Musqueam person) notes that YVR'S thematic design and architecture representing B.C.'S regions, plus the Indigenous art, means “we're welcoming people home, and welcoming visitors, in a true spirit of reconciliation.” At a time when some are struggling to reconcile Canada's history, she believes “we have an opportunity to look at Indigenous culture with new eyes. We're hearing people saying, I would like to learn more about that.”
When Point herself travels internationally, she says, “I want to fully understand the history of a place, the people of the land there, and have an authentic experience. Where I can actually learn and experience local culture and local knowledge, then I have a story to tell when I get home.”
For business groups welcoming inbound travellers, Point encourages collaboration with Indigenous travel entrepreneurs for fresh local experiences, or perhaps choosing Indigenous artist or maker
works for a corporate gift exchange. “It could be as simple as a land acknowledgement greeting at the start of your meetings or sharing something about your own culture as an introduction.” For example, Point says, “My mum is Irish, and welcomes people by putting down a cup of tea.”
Though she stops short of calling her job a one-of-a-kind role, Point does say that other airports have been in touch for learnings from her position. One insight is that reconciliation ties into many existing business goals.
“Chances are you're doing something already about protecting the land and waters, or about welcoming newcomers,” she notes. “Instead of making it a separate thing, reconciliation becomes part of how we construct a business culture."