LAYING THE GROUNDWORK

Over two decades of practical experience led to creation of the Indigenous Bridges Youth Ambassador Program.

An Indigenous delegation participating in the 2004 United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

Finding one's way through the exploration of cultural identity

The ATAYAL Organization was founded in 2001, after Mr. Coolidge discovered that through his mother, he had roots with the Indigenous Atayal tribe. This journey of discovery was life-changing, providing a sense of identity and belonging to a large family previously unknown to Tony. Believing the culture to be precious and beautiful, he wanted to share it with people who would appreciate it. He wanted it to be available for his children in the future, hoping that the sharing of culture would contribute to its preservation.

Mr. Coolidge researched whatever he could online about Taiwan's Indigenous culture and shared it in the USA for the organization's first three years. He attended the 2004 United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) in New York City. Joining the Taiwanese youth delegation on stage in front of world leaders, Tony witnessed their passion in sharing the challenging issues faced by the Indigenous youth of Taiwan. The problems that were shared had their roots in the lack of connection between the members of the Indigenous communities and their traditional culture and wisdom. It struck me as ironic that these young leaders would seek solutions from people who were thousands of miles away from their own communities.

2004 Indigenous Heritage Festival

Later that year, the ATAYAL Organization would host the Indigenous Heritage Festival in Orlando, Florida. The festival brought to the USA, Taipei Multicultural Arts Group, a delegation of Taiwan's Indigenous cultural artists led by Alice Takewatan. The festival also brought together Indigenous groups from the USA and Africa. Seeing Central Florida locals mesmerized by the culture and smiling as they interacted with the performing artists provided Tony with a sense of satisfaction. However, the most impactful result of the event was seeing how the Indigenous people of Taiwan and the Native Americans cried and embraced each other as if they were family upon meeting each other for the first time. Tony wondered what possibilities would be revealed by bringing Indigenous people together?

Impressed by Mr. Coolidge's desire to share "who he is" with the world, Alice Takewatan invited Tony, and his filmmakers Aaron Hosé and Chris Bremer, to Taiwan to explore the Indigenous communities and deepen his connection to his Indigenous identity. Mother Alice sponsored a journey to the island of Taiwan, which was documented and shared around the world as the award-winning film, Voices In The Clouds. From his exploration, he became convinced that the key to cultural preservation lay in the Indigenous communities, and he wanted to find a way to make a difference for them.

Tony Coolidge moved his family to Taiwan in 2009, and the ATAYAL Organization gained an important partner, Gary Smoke. He had a passion for "giving back" to the beautiful island and people of Taiwan, and he provided the energy, connection, and ideas that provided continuity and opportunities for the NGO. It wasn't long before the ATAYAL Organization attracted more volunteers in Taiwan and the USA, allowing us to organize a variety of activities and culture exchanges and establish connections with the people and communities in Taiwan. With the experiences and connections, the organization and volunteers were able to create new exchange opportunities.

Taproot Indigenous Youth Exchange Program

The ATAYAL Organization's first youth exchange program was the Taproot Indigenous Youth Exchange Program. This program brought a delegation of Maori students from New Zealand to learn how to cooperate on media projects with students from Taiwan. This 2-week event explored how to overcome culture and language barriers to cooperate on media projects and explored funding sources like the ANZTEC Agreement between Taiwan and New Zealand.

Deputy Director Gary Smoke established connections with the Indigenous groups in Washington State with an Austronesian group from the Tao peoples of Orchid Island. This connection with Native American leaders turned into an exchange organized around the annual Tribal Canoe Journeys, which is a very large culture exchange event centered around traditional canoe culture. What the organization discovered was how being immersed in cultural traditions helped to reconnect the youth to their communities. Hanford McCloud of the Nisqually Tribe joined our organization as a Board member and encouraged our organization to focus our efforts on the youth.

The ATAYAL Organization's mission and activities have been a challenge for over two decades. There are many unsolved problems in the Indigenous communities and barriers to the transfer of Indigenous culture and wisdom to the younger generation. The difficulties faced by Indigenous communities continue to increase as the people become more distant from the identity and wisdom of their ancestors. The identity can provide a source of connection, strength, and confidence to each person. The collective wisdom of the ancestors may not only solve the problems of communities, but they may also help all of humanity reconnect with Mother Earth and live more sustainably.