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Anangu
Tours is owned and operated by Anangu , the traditional
Aboriginal owners of Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park.
They and their ancestors have lived as a part of this arid
environment for many thousands of years. They have developed
an intricate knowledge of the environment and with this understanding
developed a sustainable lifestyle that is still practised
today. Tjukurpa encompasses embraces and expresses all
of this knowledge, it is the mechanism through which information
is passed from generation to generation.
Our tours
are designed according to this ancient Law, they actively
promote Anangu cultural values and thus assist Anangu
to sustain Tjukurpa & their culture. This has a
profound effect on the self esteem of Anangu staff
employed to present their culture to visitor. It makes
them proud of their culture and more eager about learning
and maintaining their ancient Law.
Anangu
Tours is unique in that social, cultural, environment and
commercial sustainability must be adhered to by Anangu
Tours or the whole basis of our company would crumble. If
our business is not a commercial success then it will have
a major negative impact all on other aspects; however it will
not be a commercial success unless we take particular care
of our social, cultural and ecological environments.
Uluru
Kata Tjuta National Park is one of a handful of locations
that is listed as a Cultural Landscape under UNESCO World
Heritage Legislation. This listing highlights the unique living
culture that exists and must carefully managed to be sustained.
To ensure
that tourism activities do not dilute this cultural base,
Anangu Tours works with the tourism industry and encourages
them to promote the cultural aspects of the Park to
tourists, and many companies are rising to this challenge.
Anangu Tours is at the forefront of these efforts,
particularly in the promotion of Anangu cultural values
to an increasingly interested market.
The entirety
of Anangu Tours activities and touring products are
based upon interpreting country and culture: all products
interpret some aspect of the people, their customs and culture,
and their interpretation of the landscape of Uluru Kata Tjuta
National Park. All activities are conducted with Anangu
, for Anangu , with the approval of Anangu and
on Anangu land.
Research
from the Northern Territory Tourist Commission indicates that
68% of international visitors are interested in Aboriginal
culture. This interest is growing every year.
Visitors particularly want to meet and interact with Aboriginal
people, and hear about their culture directly from them.
Anangu
Tours gives visitors this opportunity to meet with and interact
with Aboriginal people, and hear first-hand of the cultural
significance of Uluru. They know they are getting
authentic information that our guides have learned from their
grandparents since childhood. Indeed Senior Anangu
guides are very strict about who is allowed to guide on tours,
and their cultural information delivery is checked by them
to ensure it is accurate and appropriate for the ears of visitors.
The delighted
letters we get from visitors from all over the world and Australia
indicates to us that their visit to Uluru is hugely
enriched by hearing about the cultural values of the Park
directly from its traditional owners.
More
importantly, the tourism industry has embraced our tours,
and we are sold strongly by trade throughout the world.
They are recognising that their markets are increasingly interested
in learning more about the heritage and culture of Uluru,
and are less interested in the “come, climb, conquer and go”
mentality of previous times.
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