The Rupert Report

From the Desk of AIANTA's CEO | February 21, 2023

The Super Bowl LVII artwork designed by Lucinda Hinojos (b. 1981; Pascua Yaqui, Chiricahua Apache, White Mountain Apache, and Pima (Akimel O’odham)).

Lucinda is the first Chicana & Native American artist to work with the

National Football league.

AIANTA Highlights for the Coming Week

Healthy One Bite at a Time with Native Food & Plants

Feb 21, 2023 10:00 a.m. (Mountain)

Chef Jessica Walks First with Ketapapen Kitchen &

the Seed to Feed Native Food Initiative

Join us as the AIANTA Agritourism Specialist, Kelli Hepler introduces you to three experts who will share with you approaches to introducing Native Foods to farm visitors using health as a strategy.

Eating your way to a healthier body and mind can be achieved. Studies show that the foods nutrient density is higher when the produce is harvested at a peak ripened state. Once the food is picked, its sugars become starch and the nutrient value diminishes. Let’s hear from our expert guest presenters about Getting Healthy One Bite at a Time.

Our speakers are three leading Native Food experts:

• Tiana Suazo, Executive Director of the Red Willow Center in Taos Pueblo, NM
• Chef Jessica Walks First with Ketapanen Kitchen and the Seed to Feed Native Food Initiative in Chicago, IL; and
• Spring Alaska Schreiner, the owner and Principal Ecologist-Indigenous Agriculturalist of Sakari Farms in Bend, OR.

Inviting guests to your agricultural enterprise to learn more about growing, harvesting, and preparing native foods is a great way to increase on-farm sales and improve the health of your community. How can you integrate the information into your agritourism enterprise?

One Spot Remaining for Tribal Row at IPW

IPW is the leading inbound travel trade show, connecting U.S. travel exhibitors with travel buyers and media to promote their product and negotiate future business, securing America’s position as a foremost global travel destination and showcasing the best of what the U.S. has to offer. AIANTA and the U.S. Travel Association have organized Tribal Row at IPW to present a cohesive American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian (tribal) tourism message and provide participants with enhanced marketing opportunities and pre-show technical assistance and training. 

There is only one spot remaining for each of the options to attend IPW with AIANTA – Booth Partner or Tribal Row. Visit www.aianta.org/visitor-outreach/ipw/ for more information about these options or contact AIANTA Visitor Outreach Manager, Ciarra Greene, at cgreene@aianta.org.

Nevada's 2023 Tribal Tourism Conference

Join us for Nevada's 2023 Tribal Tourism Conference! 

AIANTA is partnering with the Bureau of Land Management, Nevada’s Indian Territory and the Nevada Indian Commission to host the conference at the historic Stewart Indian School in Carson City, Nevada.

The Nevada Tribal Tourism Conference (NTTC) aims to facilitate conversations with the Native communities, federal agencies, nonprofit associations, and elected officials on the economic and cultural importance of a healthy hospitality industry as well as support for Tribes to tell their stories.



Among the activities for the conference, you will have a chance to tour the Museum and Cultural Center at Stewart and explore the grounds of this historic landmark. We will also be hosting a tour of the California Trail as it enters Carson City on the afternoon of March 20th. Local tribal members and historians will be on hand to discuss the impact the trail has had on Native people.

Some of the other things you can do at the conference.

• Hear from local, state, and national tourism experts.
• Connect and network with other tribes from across the state.
• Advance and develop your business, career, and tourism ventures.
• Gain an understanding of what is needed and how to participate in domestic and international markets.

Registration is now open and hotel accommodations are available!

Scholarship Deadline for ASU/AIANTA Sustainable Tourism for Native Nations and Communities is Tuesday, February 28, 2023

AIANTA, in collaboration with the School of Community Resources & Development, in the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions at Arizona State University (ASU), Downtown Phoenix, has designed a Professional Certificate Program in Sustainable Tourism for Native Nations and Communities Certificate. The online program brings together industry experts who help students explore the importance of sustainable tourism with a specific emphasis on American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian cultural tourism efforts.

The 15 scholarships for the course are funded by NATIVE Act funds through a collaboration with the Office of Indian Economic Development.

Super Bowl LVII highlights Arizona Tribal Nations

The Super Bowl LVII has made history by working with Native American artists and performers during the main game event and in weeks leading up to the final game on Sunday February 12, 2023. Native America and the 22 Tribes of Arizona were represented beautifully in the artwork made by Lucinda Hinojos (Pascua Yaqui, Chiricahua Apache, White Mountain Apache, and PimAkimel O’odham), which was used in the official NFL Super Bowl ticket designs, signage, and posters. In addition, Hinojos' artwork was painted as a large mural in downtown Phoenix, the mural was created in with the help of Cahokia, an Indigenous-led platform for creative peacekeeping, and artists Randy Barton (Diné/Navajo), Anitra “Yukue” Molina (Yaqui), and Carrie “CC” Curley (San Carlos Apache).

Hinojos told Forbes.com, “For me, this is a really huge deal because not many people know that here in Arizona we have 22 tribes, nor do they even know the land that we’re on, so with everything that I’m doing with this painting, it ties into those elements... This painting represents celebrating the Super Bowl, but at the same time, it’s also honoring both of my cultures, the Chicano culture and my Indigenous culture.”

Amazingly, Hinojos was not alone in representing Native America in Super Bowl LVII. The NFL partnered with four Arizona artists (two of which were Native American) in the return of the NFL's Origins Collection. Jared Yazzie (Diné/Navajo) and Elias J. Not Afraid (Apsaalooké/Crow) were the two Native American artists included as designers for the 2023 collection. Lucinda wore a strapless up-cycled gown with dentalium shells designed by Red Berry Woman (Hidatsa, Dakota, and Assininboine). The dentalium are shells widely used by Native American and First Nations people for centuries. The dress also adorned with painted dentalium making this traditional work into a more contemporary design. The NFL also had Colin Denny (Diné/Navajo), perform 'American the Beautiful' in Native American Sign Language before at the beginning of the big game.

If you weren't able to see theses amazing artists and their work we have linked them below, we hope you enjoy seeing the representation as much as we do!