Date / place: 2006–2010 / France, Canada

Employer/client: University of Montpellier III with an EU FP6 research grant

Position: Doctorate student, self-funded + a Marie Curie scholarship 

Description: Title: Co-constructing Indigenous tourism through participatory action research and information and communication technology: a new approach to traditional community management of resources and territories

Indigenous peoples have been the subject of many studies in the past. Today they are exploring new ways to reclaim their language, culture and identity and to reappropriate research processes, concepts and tools. With the aim of revisiting participatory action research and adapting it to the Indigenous context, we developed collaborative research projects with 13 communities in northern Canada (Cree and Inuit) and in northern Scandinavia (Saami). We were able to investigate the concerns and challenges faced by these communities, study the processes of social engagement in tourism projects, and explore new Indigenous research methodologies. In parallel, we explored the possibilities of collaborative online research via Web 2.0 and ICT tools through a network of 200 Indigenous tourist initiatives published in Le Guide des Destinations Indigènes (https://aborinet.cefe.cnrs.fr) and put their initiators in contact through a SPIP content management system.