On Tuesday, October 7, about twenty members of the tourism industry took part in a conference/workshop on the promotion and interpretation of the marine cultural heritage, an event organized by Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine in collaboration with the ACCORD Recreational Tourism Cluster and the Musée de la mer.

Led by Mr. René Rivard, a museum specialist, the conference allowed the participants to explore a set of themes specific to the Îles de la Madeleine's territory: the visits of the first peoples in the archipelago, the archaeological sites, the golden age of inshore fishing and schooners, the navigation and the shipwrecks throughout the centuries, the industrial heritage, the occupations, etc.

The objectives of the activity included:

Encouraging innovations in the development of interpretation activities for the visitors;
Promoting networking between organizations of the Réseau muséal and actors of the tourism industry that are working for the development and promotion of cultural tourism; and
Stimulating the renewal of the tourism offer on the territory.

After the presentation, a networking activity allowed the members to have further discussions (e.g. about the identification of joint actions). They discussed about the need to update the understanding of certain aspects of the Madelinot heritage, the development of joint promotional initiatives and new niches, the perspectives of enhancing the island's heritage through a marine protected area around the archipelago, etc.

This activity was made possible with the financial support of the Conférence régionale des élus Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine and the ministère de la Culture et des Communications. The objective of the ACCORD Recreational Tourism Cluster is to generate projects that bring value-added benefits to the targeted enterprises.

Activité de réseautage - Patrimoine culturel relié à la mer Crédit photos : Nigel Quinn