There is a growing interest among Canadian and international tourists to connect with Indigenous culture and people. They seek authentic hands-on experiences to interact with culture, traditions, arts, foods, storytelling and history.
Métis Crossing is the only major Métis cultural centre in Alberta and one of the largest in Canada. Near Smoky Lake, Alberta, Métis Crossing offers:
- a museum
- a historical village
- a photo gallery
- an indoor meeting area
- restored homesteads and gardens
Métis Nation Alberta created experiences where visitors can touch, feel and participate in traditional activities that appeal to a range of visitors, year round.
One of those experience is connecting visitors to the land by harvesting ingredients for their meals.
“As we plan to grow however, we want to see upwards of 80,000 visitors a year coming to Métis Crossing. We cannot sustainably take our visitors out onto the land base to harvest at that kind of scale,” said Juanita Marois, CEO, Métis Crossing. “So what the PrairiesCan funding has allowed us to do is to plant our haskaps and our Saskatoon bushes so we can still have the same idea of the program but in a more sustainable manner.”
Métis Nation Alberta received $500,000 from PrairiesCan’s Canadian Experiences Fund (CEF). The funding helps develop the “farm and forest to table” culinary experiences, the basis of a robust culinary program at Métis Crossing.
The CEF supported 18 Indigenous organizations in Alberta with over $4.7 million in funding to create or enhance tourism products, facilities and experiences. The fund invested in increasing Indigenous tourism and growing tourism in rural and remote communities.
Authentic Indigenous tourism experience grows in Alberta (length: 3:03)
Transcript: Authentic Indigenous tourism experience grows in Alberta
[music]
Video opens to an aerial view of Métis Crossing and the North Saskatchewan River, near Smoky Lake, Alberta.
LILYROSE MEYERS, TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE HOLDER AND TEACHER, MÉTIS CROSSING (voiceover): The land you find here, is got a lot of history to it.
Video transitions to a young woman in traditional dress in a natural landscape looking out over the river.
LILYROSE MEYERS (voiceover): and our ancestors are still around here, and this is a place of healing. Heal on the land, the land will heal you. Get back to your roots. That's very important.
LILYROSE MEYERS (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): But when you're here, you find it's a little bit got special to it.
Video transitions to a display of a Red River Cart in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre.
JUANITA MAROIS, CEO, MÉTIS CROSSING (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): Métis Crossing is Alberta's first major Métis destination. It is a place where we share and celebrate the Métis culture. We engage people in activities that promote an appreciation of our people, our customs and our celebrations.
Video transitions to a highlight activities at Métis Crossing including canoeing on the river, and traditional meal preparations over an outdoor fire.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover): We engage visitors with everything we do, so Métis Crossing has been very purposeful in the place where we're located.
JUANITA MAROIS (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): When we designed our buildings it was about creating spaces in which experiences can occur. So it was never about putting old things behind glass and putting labels on them. It was always about how do we engage people in who we are as Métis people.
Video transitions to a display of a red Métis sash being woven on a loom in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre.
JUANITA MAROIS(voiceover): And that comes from learning our traditional arts and crafts.
Video transitions to a chef preparing a traditional meal in the kitchen at the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover): It comes from harvesting and eating our foods, it comes from being on our land, and it comes from talking to our people.
Video transitions to guests taking part in activities including archery and helping at the farm.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover): And Métis Crossing provides us an opportunity to share and celebrate who we are.
JUANITA MAROIS (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): From our perspective we can talk about the contributions that the Métis people have made to Canada. We can talk about what our young people are doing now and what our goals are for the future.
Video transitions to staff setting out coffee and tea for guests.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover):>And I think it's also really important to the Smoky Lake community. From an economic development perspective, we have been working with them to develop an entire tourism strategy. Building from this as the anchor. And there are a number of people moving into this community and planning businesses to grow from what we have created here at Métis Crossing.
Video transitions to staff preparing a traditional meal over an outdoor fire in a winter setting.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover):The PrairiesCan funding has been great for us to build on our culinary program. So traditionally Métis people harvested from the land. We used the, the proteins, the animals, the vegetables, the fruits that came off the land.
JUANITA MAROIS (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): As we plan to grow however, we want to see upwards of 80,000 visitors a year coming to Métis Crossing.
Video transitions to guests on the patio of one of Métis Crossing’s “glamping” sites.
JUANITA MAROIS (voiceover): We cannot sustainably take our visitors out onto the land base to harvest at that kind of scale.
JUANITA MAROIS (seated in the Métis Crossing Cultural and Gathering Centre): So what the PrairiesCan funding has allowed us to do is to plant our haskaps and our Saskatoon bushes so we can still have the same idea of the program but in a more sustainable manner. And certainly our bison tour allows us to really create a space where people can interact with an animal in a way that they never have before.
Text on screen: PrairiesCan committed $500,000 to Métis Crossing to develop and deliver its Farm and Forest to Table culinary experience.
Text on screen: Additional footage provided by Métis Crossing.
PrairiesCan website: www.prairiescan.gc.ca
PrairiesCan Twitter: @PrairiesCanEN
Prairies Economic Development Canada Wordmark appears on screen.
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