"E malama i ka 'olelo, i kuleana e kipa mai ai."
"Remember the invitation, for it gives you the privilege of coming here."
A person feels welcome when accepting an invitation andfriendly promises.

-'Olelo No'eau, Hawaiian Proverbs &Poetical Sayings
Collected by Mary Kawena Pukui

Tourist -vs- Guest
One of the most unique opportunities that the Cultural Exchange offers is to be a guest instead of a tourist. What's the difference?
The American Heritage Dictionary defines tourist as someone who travels for pleasure, while the definition for guest is one who is a recipient of hospitality at the home or table of another.

There is an important difference between the two. In many of our areas tourists only take. They take without asking, they take without knowing. A tourist tends to be disconnected with the community they are visiting, having no idea how they impact the people who live there. Whereas a guest is connected through a give and receive relationship with the host.

Tourist have not scored high points with native communities. They have been known to take photos without permission, enter forbidden areas, ski on sacred mountains, skinny dip in sacred pools and commit many more acts that go against Native peoples wishes and instructions. In addition, tourism, while some may argue has provided a sources of economic gain, has left many communities socially bankrupt. Motels and resorts have displaced many, driving up the cost of living which has forced many native people from their lands.

On the Exchange Trip we will be guests in the best way we can be. We will learn from our host communities what is expected from us and we will do our best to follow their directions. Our aim will to be part of the community, to receive the hospitality and then give back in the best way we can. You can show your gratitude through all those manners your grandma taught you, saying please and thank you and helping out with the work that needs to get done. We will respect the ways and the wishes of our hosts and, in doing so, connect with these different communities in a way no tourist could

Can I bring my Walkman?
No. We are insisting that you please leave your walkman, mp3, dvd, gameboys etc. all at home during the trip. We know it may be a little hard, but we believe that the sounds, sights, and experiences you will have will make up for it. We do encourage you to bring your appropriate music to share in the vans as we drive. Use this time to learn about the Native Cultures we are representing. The old people say that answers can can come at any time, you might miss them if you aren't paying attention.

Current EventsAs we get closer to our take-off date we have been busy getting ready.

In Hopi the boys have been working on several different projects, including building a stone bread oven and helping clean out ancient springs.

The California boys showed their support for the 2005 Peace and Dignity Run by running with the runners into Redding. The Peace and Dignity run is a run to unite the indigenous peoples of both North and South America. The runners have been running since May when they left Alaska towards their destination of Panama where they will meet up with South American runners that started at the southern tip of Argentina. We will be seeing these folks while we are in Hopi (get your sneakers ready, we may run with them again) Check out their website

www.peaceanddignityjourneys.com

Thanks April , Angela, Lupe and Pops for all the great food!

July 7 the International Indian Treaty Council Conference will begin. This year it is being held in Pit River Country. The California NYCE youth will be doing what they can to help. They have already put in a couple good days of work prepping the site. One of our youth will be a presenter on the youth panel. www.treatycouncil.org

Also in California, we held our first annual NYCE yard sale. We were able to raise over $500 by getting rid of all that junk that everyone had been storing. Thanks goes to LaVonne and Gateway School District for letting us use the school grounds for the sale. Thank you all for your donations. And a Special Thank You goes to Aunty Pu'ulena and Aunty Alana for all their hard work all weekend! Start saving your junk for the yard sale next year; we want it to be even bigger!

Community Support

Thank you all for your support:

Seventh Generation Fund
Shasta Union High School Indian Education Program
Gateway Indian Education Program
Local Indians For Education
Redding Rancheria
Black Mesa Water Coalition
The Charitable Fund Foundation
Pacific Writers Connection
New Century Public Charter Schools
Hopi Office of Youth Affairs
All the Hopi Village Youth Programs
Costco
Shopko
Walmart
Target
Sears
Safeway
and all the Private Donors who have graciously gifted this program.

Thank you all for making this program come to life.

Please contact us if you would like to help the program, we can always use cash, food, love and other donations.