Grant name: Aichus Ethno Workshop
Local partner: Altai Indigenous Peoples Youth Initiative Group
Country: Russia (Altai Republic)
Background and objective
Knowledge of indigenous culture stems not from the indigenous residents themselves but largely from tour guides and tourism companies from other regions, people that do not actually represent indigenous culture. As a result, information about Altai’s indigenous peoples is often inaccurate or even prejudicial, resulting in division and ethnic intolerance between newcomers and the local population. At the present, there are short-term, seasonal projects – ethnocenters – where one can learn about Altaian culture. Most of these use a museum-style model.
The aim of the project is to create a permanent center to train young leaders who will competently and adequately represent their culture and protect their rights against increasing Western monopolization of traditional knowledge in the tourism sector.
We accomplished everything we had planned to during the initiative reporting period: create and organize an active workshop – “Aichus”. This workshop is located in the scenic of Manzherok, the gateway to the mountainous part of Altai Republic. The Aichus Workshop is a comprehensive information center for visitors to Altai Republic, a place where they can get accurate primary information about the indigenous cultures of Altai and the local of ethnocultural centers located in outlying areas.
Local partner information
The Aichus Ethno Workshop was established in April 2018. Its objective is to create a youth movement that represents their rights and consciously represents their culture. The workshop has developed Master classes and interactive creative event formats in the Moscow region, Nenet Autonomous Okrug, Kamchatka Krai, and Sakhalin Oblast between 2014-2017. It also worked on a marketing and advertising campaign in Kochevnik Ethnopark in the Moscow region from 2014 to 2018.
