Indigenous Economic Development: A Tale of Two Wineries

Abstract

In this paper, we explore the economic development activities of Indigenous people in the 'new global economy'. This exploration is conducted in four parts. The first provides an overview of Indigenous economic development-the objectives and the process. The second part is a theoretical exploration of the Indigenous approach to development described in the first section in an attempt to assess its feasibility. The third section consists of two case studies of Indigenous development, one about a group of Maori in New Zealand and the other about a group of Aboriginal people in Canada. In each case, the people of the communities involved developed wine-related businesses as a key aspect of their economic development strategy. Indeed, they created the world's first and second Indigenous-owned wineries, the Tohu Winery in New Zealand and Nk'Mip Cellars in Canada. The cases studies briefly document the creation of these wineries and then describe contribution that these businesses have made to the economic development of the communities involved. In the fourth section, we offer concluding comments about Indigenous economic development activities as brought to life by the case studies.