FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, AZ — A group of Native leaders is setting the tone for the next century of Grand Canyon National Park with a new collection of stories about their cultural ties to the Grand Canyon. “The Voices of Grand Canyon,” which features words, videos, and audio stories from Navajo, Hopi, Zuni, Havasupai, and Hualapai tribal members, launches on February 26, 2020, the 101st anniversary of Grand Canyon National Park.
The project grew out of a series of gatherings leading up to the park’s centennial year, where community members from tribes across the Colorado Plateau discussed the past, present, and future of the Grand Canyon. Eleven tribes, some of which live hundreds of miles away from the park today, trace their ancestors, culture, and places of origin to the Grand Canyon. The group, called the Intertribal Centennial Conversations, is working on initiatives that put tribes at the forefront of education, economics, and stewardship of the Grand Canyon.
“It’s not the Grand Canyon to us, it is home. Our stories place us in the canyon since time immemorial, well before there was a national park,” said Sarana Riggs, Grand Canyon manager at the Grand Canyon Trust. “These voices depict the canyon’s heartbeat. And as long as the heartbeat is still there, we are still here.”
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Filmmaker Deidra Peaches of Paper Rocket Productions did the videography and photography for the “The Voices of Grand Canyon” project. Peaches is a graduate of the Change Labs business incubator program, which supports Native entrepreneurs and helps them grow their businesses.
To redefine the next century of Grand Canyon National Park, Native voices need to be amplified. The Intertribal Centennial Conversations group hopes to not only grow this collection of stories in the park’s 101st year, but also to make space in the tourism economy for Native-owned businesses. The group is planning an intertribal economic summit in June, in coordination with Grand Canyon National Park, the Grand Canyon Conservancy, and others, to create new opportunities and partnerships for the next century and beyond.
PHOTOS
Photos available for free media use. Please credit "Deidra Peaches, courtesy of Grand Canyon Trust."
