Earlier this month we traveled to Allegany County, Maryland to host our annual Highlands Creative Economy Tourism Summit. This year’s summit focused on improving visitor experience for sustainable tourism and featured presentations and discussions from various organizations in western Maryland working in recreation and heritage tourism.
We began our event by exploring several historic sites around Canal Place Heritage Park in the heart of downtown Cumberland. We first learned about the unique artwork in Emmanuel Episcopal Church and its role in the Underground Railroad. We then visited the Chesapeake & Ohio National Historic Park museum and its exhibit, which explores the history and the importance of the canal. Finally we toured the “Crossroads of America” exhibit at the Allegany Museum, which frames the development of Cumberland at the nexus of several nationally important transportation routes, including the C&O Canal, Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and the National Road.
The summit was held at the Evergreen Heritage Center. The keynote presentation from Dr. Susan Williams explored how too much “success” of tourism growth can negatively impact communities, and offered some examples to balance growth with “regenerative tourism” and shared the importance of authentic, emotion-driven memory-making. Other discussion topics included sustainability and educational programs at Evergreen Heritage Center, tourism development at the State and County level, trail development from proposal to established initiative, how state Heritage Areas work in Maryland, accessible infrastructure at Rocky Gap State Park, and free accessibility resources available for businesses and organizations. A copy of some of the slideshows and resources presented are available HERE.
A common theme from all our sessions was that organizations must work willingly and collaboratively with partner organizations and community members at all stages of their endeavors. We were glad to meet new community members in our region. Thanks to everyone who hosted our group, helped plan behind the scenes, contributed to our sessions and discussions, and represented their organizations at the event. We are honored to have the opportunity to hold these conversations that cross county and state lines.
We hope to see you at one of our monthly online meetings. Sign up for upcoming meetings or learn more at our Creative Economy page. If you have participated in ANY of these meetings, trainings, panels, or summits by AFNHA or Eastern, please take the time to fill out this survey and let us know if you think that these sessions have been helpful, or if you have any suggestions for improving the program.
