“UNESCO’s founding intention is that cultures should discover and learn about each other. This aim is very much at the heart of what Wanuskewin represents,” said Candace Wasacase-Lafferty, Chair of Wanuskewin’s Board of Directors. “We are delighted to share Wanuskewin’s incredible history and renewal with our distinguished guests.”

If Wanuskewin can achieve World Heritage Designation, it would be a great boost to the Parks renewal plans and long term sustainability. Dana Soonias took over six years ago as CEO of the Park and inherited a bit of a troubled institution. But six years of hard work and of strengthening relationships has Wanuskewin on the cusp of greatness. “It has taken many years to rebuild the foundation of the Park with our stakeholders and community. The rebuild required a review of all systems, processes and procedures, internally and externally. We brought back our Elders and had many meetings with them on all aspects of our programming and services.  We worked to bring back the cultural integrity that had been removed for various reasons and began to listen instead of talk,” said Soonias. “Great things can happen when you open your mind to the voices that provide direction, advice and guidance. I feel our successes lay in our ability to learn from the past, listen to our traditional knowledge keepers and maintaining an open and welcoming environment for everyone.”

Since October 2014, Wanuskewin has seen some amazing events...and races. Over 1000 people attended the Walking With Our Sisters exhibit and they also set attendance records on National Aboriginal Day and for the Blood Moon Eclipse Viewing by welcoming over 1400 visitors combined. But the big boost for the Park came in welcoming the contestants from one of Canada’s most popular TV shows, The Amazing Race.

“This is the number one show in Canada and you could see it in our web statistics and the amount of phone calls and amount of well wishes to the dancers and singers went through the roof. We were really proud to be a part of it and Wanuskewin represented really well,” said Andrew McDonald Wanuskewin’s Sales and Marketing Manager of the show that had an estimated 2.6 million viewers. “The impact on the Park was great and to be able to go into that many homes and to be able to share images of Wanuskewin and the traditions, history and dance is so wonderful and a real positive for us.”

The extra publicity and enhanced capacity bodes well considering the ambitious renewal plans in place for the Park. The renewal plans include enlarging the Interpretive Centre to allow for new state of the art interpretive exhibits and expanded educational programming and an art gallery. Externally, the visitor experience will be enhanced through extending trails, reclaiming native prairie grasslands, and returning bison to the Park.

The work has just begun to ensure the long-term protection of Wanuskewin and the lands surrounding the park. “The UNESCO designation is a long term plan and through partnerships with the City of Saskatoon, Province of Saskatchewan and the federal government, we hope our dreams will be realized. We are building a legacy for future generations and we need our communities’ support to ensure it is built in a manner that is authentic, welcoming, open and respectful to all who walk through our doorways,” added Soonias. “Despite some challenges along the way, we all feel great satisfaction as we all have a purpose here and the successes of the past year are only small examples of the good work coming our way. Wanuskewin is about our people and their sacred relationship to the land - and land is life.”