Grand Canyon Conservancy is the official nonprofit partner of Grand Canyon National Park, raising private funds, operating retail shops within the park, and providing premier guided educational programs about the natural and cultural history of the region. Our supporters fund projects including trails and historic building preservation, educational programs for the public, and the protection of wildlife and their natural habitat.
In addition to preservation and protection, one of GCC’s most significant impacts comes from our partnership with the Inter-Tribal Working Group and Grand Canyon National Park. From updated signage throughout the park to the Cultural Demonstration Program, GCC supports an ecosystem of efforts to represent Indigenous connections to the canyon and amplify Indigenous narratives that have long been overshadowed.
Over the past 10 years, millions of visitors to the park have been able to meet and learn from over 200 tribal artisans. GCC funding covers costs from supplies to travel stipends and honorariums, allowing tribal members to share their culture and connection to the canyon with the public. Demonstrations are free and open to all. The Cultural Demonstration Program was inaugurated in 2014 as an initiative of the Grand Canyon Intertribal Working Group. The program began with four demonstrators and now boasts more than 200 demonstrators! Demonstrations allow visitors to Grand Canyon National Park to meet Indigenous artists while they practice traditional and modern crafts.
Havasupai Gardens, formerly Indian Gardens, is another example of how GCC supports new signs and interpretive materials to ensure the stories of Grand Canyon’s most visited sites are accurately told. Havasupai Gardens is one of the most pivotal spots in Grand Canyon and its renaming honors the Havasupai people, the original inhabitants of the land.
Our goal is to ensure that every encounter in Grand Canyon National Park is an opportunity to learn about and honor the enduring legacy of its 11 tribal communities.
The generosity of our donors helps to:
· Enable first voice representation at Grand Canyon through the Cultural Demonstration Program, Heritage Days, the “We Are Grand Canyon Film”, and the Inter-tribal Cultural Site.
· Fund the development, creation, and installation of signs and interpretative materials that honor Indigenous connections to Grand Canyon.
· Build awareness among thousands of park visitors each year of the vibrant tapestry of cultures that call Grand Canyon home.
Visit www.grandcanyon.org/protect-grand-canyon/projects/we-are-grand-canyon-f… to learn more about the 11 Indigenous tribal communities who have called Grand Canyon home since time immemorial.
Visit www.grandcanyon.org/protect-grand-canyon/projects to learn about all of the other important projects happening at GCC
