2011 AITC Featured Speakers

Nina Alexander
Nina Alexander is a Senior Projects Manager with the U.S. Department of the Interior. She has over 23 years of government experience working in regulatory policy and procedure, training and education, with over six years working to support the Secretary of the Interior’s fiduciary trust responsibilities to Native Americans.

Nina is currently working with the Department of the Interior’s Indian Arts and Crafts Board, which oversees the enforcement of the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (Act). The Act is a truth-in-advertising law that prohibits misrepresentation in the marketing of Indian arts and crafts. It carries both civil and criminal penalties. To help raise the visibility and understanding of the Act and its protections, Nina meets with Indian Tribes, Nations, and Pueblos throughout the western United States and in particular the Southwest. To assist with Act outreach and Act compliance, she visits businesses selling arts and crafts as Indian made and mans Act outreach booths at Indian arts and crafts markets and related events.

Neville Bhada
Neville Bhada is the Vice President of Communications and Public Relations for Southeast Tourism Society. He is responsible for communications, Web and media. He also serves on the board of the Southeast Festivals and Events Association and is the executive director for the Southeast States chapter of the Travel and Tourism Research Association (TTRA).

Neville is from Atlanta. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Georgia in international business and a master's degree from Clemson University in travel and tourism. TTRA recognized his study on the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and honored him with the "Best Thesis" award.

Freddie Bitsoie
Chef Freddie Bitsoie is a proud member of the Dine' (Navajo) Tribe. While studying Anthropology at the University of New Mexico, he discovered most of his research centered on the food ways of Ancient Puebloan societies. Shifting his focus to his true passion was a major discovery in Freddie's life. He enrolled at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale and has never looked back. He has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine (October 2010) and his annual Thanksgiving Feast at the Heard Museum was named one of the "Top 5 Unique Ways to Celebrate Thanksgiving" by Rand McNally (November 2010).

Gail Chehak
Gail Chehak (Klamath Tribes) is the Executive Director of the Indian Arts & Crafts Association in Albuquerque New Mexico. Prior to this, she served as the assistant manager for The Indian Craft Shop in the U.S. Department of the Interior and as the opening sales manager for the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Gail has extensive experience with tribal and non-profit organizations, having worked for the National Congress of American Indians, Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI), Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission and YWCA. While working for ATNI, she managed an arts and tourism program for the 54 ATNI Member Tribes and worked closely with the tourism departments from the states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho. She co-authored a travel guide, Native Peoples of the Northwest: A Traveler's Guide to Land, Art and Culture. In 1997, she received the Portland Oregon Visitors Association President's Award for organizing a "world-class cultural heritage event to Portland" (Indian Art Northwest). In 1998, she received the City of Portland Mayor's "Spirit of Portland" award and was named one of the "Top 25 Women Making a Difference in Portland" by The Oregon Business Journal. In 1995, she served as Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber's Delegate to the White House Conference on Travel & Tourism.

Cheryl Cloud
Cheryl Cloud serves as the Tribal Liaison for the National Scenic Byways Program at America’s Byways Resource Center. She brings more than 20 years of experience working with tribal governments as a liaison facilitating inter-governmental coordination at all levels. Her responsibilities include providing leadership and direction to assist Tribal Governments and Tribal Byways in developing byway plans, and serve as those organizations’ primary contact for the National Scenic Byways Program.

Cheryl’s previous work with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) provided experience in the areas of sovereignty; self-governance; P.L. 93-638 contracting; project, contract and financial management; and transportation planning. Previously, she served as Director of the Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP) at Michigan Technological University, providing valuable experience in tying FHWA Programs to on-the-ground “grassroots” delivery and customer service, and coordinating regional and Tribe/State networks.

Derrick Crandall
Derrick Crandall is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Recreation Coalition, a position he has held since 1981. He is the Executive Vice President of The Recreation Roundtable and serves as Co-Chair of the National Recreation Lakes Coalition, the Scenic Byways Coalition and the Coalition for Recreational Trails as well as Treasurer of the American League of Anglers and Boaters. He served as a member of the President's Commission on Americans Outdoors from 1985 to 1987. He received the Chevron Conservation Award and was named to the President's Commission on Environmental Quality in 1991.

Derrick was the initial Chairman of the Take Pride in America Advisory Board, appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, and served as the Chair of the Take Pride in America Partners Council. He was a Founding Director of the National Forest Foundation, appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture. USA Today has described him as “the outdoor guru.” He received the Spirit of Take Pride Award in October 2004 and was recognized with a Centennial Award by the U.S. Forest Service.

Scott Davis
In April 2009, Scott Davis was appointed Executive Director of the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission by Governor John Hoeven. In this position, he serves as liaison between North Dakota's state and tribal governments to address issues regarding education, business, economic development, transportation, wellness, veterans and youth. Prior to his appointment, Scott served in a number of capacities at United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, including Development Officer, Wellness Activities Coordinator, Facilitator and Adjunct Instructor for Introduction to Wellness. He also served as Culture Committee Chairman and Pow Wow Committee Member and worked with the Student Senate and all campus departments to actively pursue fundraising efforts in the private sector to advance the programs and activities at the college.

Scott holds an Associate of Arts Degree from Haskell Indian Junior College and a Bachelor's and Master's of Management Degree from the University of Mary. He is a member of the Standing Rock Lakota Hunkpapa/Turtle Mountain Chippewa.

Brent DeRaad
Brent DeRaad has served for the past five years as the Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau’s (CVB) Executive Vice President. He has been with the CVB since 2001 serving as its Vice President of Marketing (2003 – 2006) and Vice President of Membership and Corporate Communications (2001 – 2003). He currently also serves as President of the Golf Industry Association of Arizona and on the Board of Directors of the Arizona Golf Association.

Brent came to the Scottsdale CVB following four years (1997-2001) as Director of Corporate Communications for the Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau, where he implemented the CVB’s marketing and public relations efforts. He was also Media Relations Manager for the City of Scottsdale (1993 – 1997) and, while at the City, served as an executive on-loan to Arizona’s Super Bowl XXX (30) Host Committee in 1995 – 96 overseeing media operations. Brent began his career at the Fiesta Bowl where he served from 1989 – 1993 as Director of Public Relations. He received his bachelor’s (journalism/public relations) and master’s (mass communication) degrees from Arizona State University.

James Dion
James Dion is a Sustainable Business Development Associate for the Maps Division at the National Geographic (NG) Society. His work involves linking the world’s most important tourism destinations to the design capabilities of NG Maps to create innovative maps and interactive websites to increase knowledge about sustainable tourism and foster destination stewardship of cultural, historic and natural resources. Prior to joining National Geographic in 2005, he directed international ecotourism programs for conservation NGO’s in Mexico, Central America and Asia, and he has lectured at the Technical University of Graz in Austria. James’ interest in linking tourism to conservation and community development is an outgrowth of his over 15 years of experience as a professional river and wilderness guide/outfitter. He founded and developed locally run sustainable, tourism businesses in Europe and North, Central and South America.

Margo Gray-Proctor
Margo Gray‐Proctor is President of Horizon Engineering Services Co., an award‐winning, 8(a) Native American, woman‐owned civil engineering firm. The firm provides civil engineering consulting and design for gaming developments, hotels, hospitals, airports, transportation and master planning, as well as project management for projects.

In addition to many state and local activities, she currently serves as the Chairwoman of the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED) and is a Board member for the American Indian Business Network Board Member for National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA). She also Co‐Chair the Economic Development Sub‐Committee for the National Congress of American Indians, and is an active member of Women Empowering Women for Indian Nations. Margo received her education at Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK and the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH.

John Keck
John Keck has worked for the National Park Service (NPS) representing the Regional Directors Office for the past eight years on issues that cross park boundaries and representing the interests of individual park units as requested by the respective superintendent. He also serves as the Regional Tourism Coordinator for the Intermountain Region. This responsibility includes the development and implementation of a strategic tourism plan recognizing the importance of welcoming all visitors while protecting the resources and enhancing the relevance of NPS administered units to diverse populations. During his service with NPS, he has also served as Acting Superintendent at Fort Sumter/Fort Moultrie/Charles Pinckney National Monuments and Historic Sites as well as Deputy Superintendent at Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.

Previously, John had been the Director for the Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources under an appointment by Governor Jim Geringer.

Daniel Marti
Daniel Marti concentrates his practice on the protection, management and enforcement of intellectual property assets in the U.S. and abroad. He advises clients in connection with domestic and international trademark portfolio management and intellectual property-based transactions. Daniel serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Intellectual Asset Acquisitions & Transactions Team, and works closely with clients and corporate team members in structuring IP audits and due diligence investigations, and providing strategic IP counseling on numerous commercial transactions.

He has represented clients in a wide range of cases involving trademarks, false advertising, unfair competition, copyrights, trade secrets, cybersquatting and computer fraud and abuse matters before various U.S. federal courts, as well as the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Melody McCoy
Melody McCoy joined the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) as a staff attorney in 1986. At NARF, Melody has worked primarily in the areas of jurisdiction in Indian country, tribal rights in education, tribal intellectual property rights and tribal trust funds.

Melody is a past Co-Chair of the Federal Bar Association’s Indian Law Conference, 1990-1992. She served as President of the Colorado Indian Bar Association from 1990-1992, and a Board Member of the American Indian Bar Association (now the National Native American Bar Association) from 1990-1991. She was a member of NARF's Litigation Management Committee (LMC) from 1992-1995, and since May 2007 she again has been serving on the LMC. She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University (1981) and law degree from the University of Michigan (1986). She is admitted to practice law in Colorado and Massachusetts. She has practiced before all levels of tribal and federal courts, including arguing a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Melody is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

Tazbah McCullah
Tazbah has been the Marketing/Advertising Director for Indian Pueblos Marketing, Inc./Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Inc. going on nine years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of New Mexico. Her background includes working in print, radio and television.



Loretta Oden
Lorettta Oden began her passionate relationship with food as a small child at the side of her mother, grandmothers and aunts in Oklahoma. She spent most of her adult years raising her family, cooking, studying, teaching and adapting recipes to preserve the culinary legacy of her upbringing. In the 1990s, she and her son, the late chef Clayton Oden, opened the Corn Dance Cafe, the first restaurant to showcase the amazing bounty of food indigenous to the Americas. She has been featured on Good Morning America, The Today Show, In Food Today and Cooking Live, and in the following publications, The New York Times, Prevention Magazine, Sunset, Veranda, Food Arts, and National Geographic Traveler. She also served as a guest chef in the Robert Mondavi Great Chefs series and the 2006 Taste3 Celebration in Napa and on Barbara Pool Fenzl’s PBS series, Savor the Southwest. Loretta is the host of the new 5-part PBS series, Seasoned with Spirit, a culinary celebration of America's bounty combining Native American history and culture with delicious, healthy recipes inspired by indigenous foods.

Nick Pecastaing
Nick Pecastaing has a Digital Signage Expert Certification and is a member of the Nation Association of Photoshop Professionals. He has been the Multimedia Specialist at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center for four years. He designs for Web, print, and video; dabbles in mobile and touch development with a focus on User Interface design; and specializes in new media design & strategy, including social media marketing and implementation.

Kim Ribbans
Kim Ribbans is the Executive Director of the Native American Intellectual Property Enterprise Council, (NAIPEC).

Kim trained as a graphic artist and photographer and has worked for some of the most innovative advertising and marketing agencies in the world. She has Marketing, Communications, Brand Development and Business Management experience that spans over 25 years. Working in Europe and North America, and has directed projects for major organizations on national and global scales.

Most recently, she was the CEO and Market Development Director for the estate of Allan Houser, one of the most famous and successful Native American artists of the 20th Century. She has also been responsible for managing one of the country’s most recognized energy efficiency brands and the complex set of relationships with partners and clients who implement licensed programs under its name.

Sherry Rupert
Sherry Rupert is the Executive Director of the Nevada Indian Commission, appointed by Governor Guinn September of 2005. With over 20 years of tribal, public and private business experience, she possesses a strong background in accounting, finance, business administration and Indian Affairs. Sherry is a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and is currently the President of the Native Alumni Chapter of the University of Nevada, Reno Alumni Association. She was elected to her first term as President of the Governors’ Interstate Indian Council, and was formerly the Treasurer for two terms. She is the Chairwoman of the Indian Territory, a marketing arm of the Nevada Commission on Tourism, and was awarded the 2009 and 2007 Excellence in Tourism Award as well as the 2011 Statewide Excellence in Tourism Award from the Nevada Commission on Tourism for her success in promoting and advancing tourism in Indian Country. She was also awarded the 2009 Human and Civil Rights Award from the Nevada State Education Association. Most recently, Sherry was elected to serve a three-year term as the Southwest Representative on the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association Board of Directors. Sherry is an American Indian of Paiute and Washoe heritage.

Len Sanderson
Len Sanderson is Owner and President of Sanderson Strategies Group. With more than 30 years experience in public affairs as a journalist, speechwriter, campaign manager, political chief of staff and strategic corporate and communications consultant, Len works directly and discreetly with clients to develop and implement effective public positioning strategies that will protect and promote their interests with customers, voters, the media, or in the political arena or marketplace.

Len started his career as a journalist and freelance writer, working for a number of newspapers and magazines – including Time magazine – and still occasionally contributes as a guest columnist or ghostwriter. He has also successfully managed or advised local, state, and national political or issue campaigns.

Over the years, Len has worked with clients such as Major League Baseball, Environmental Defense, Seminole Tribe of Florida, The Shaw Group, Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals, Miami Dolphins, Cendant, British Airways, Pharma, Helix Healthcare, Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Council, Sunkist Growers, Aetna, P.G.A. tour, and many other confidential corporate or political clients. He also handled political and media public affairs for international mergers and acquisitions, including MCA/Matsushita, Komatsu/Union Carbide, and the buy-out of Executive Life in California. Len is a graduate of Louisiana State University and currently serves on the Board of Visitors of the LSU Manship School of Communications. In 2007, he was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame. He helped to design and participated in the Commissioner’s Initiative for Major League Baseball in the 21st Century.

Vinod Sasidharan, Ph.D.
Vinod Sasidharan serves as President of the Great Western Travel and Tourism Research Association. He has also served on the Destination Marketing Association International Student and Educator Advisory Council. He is the Past President of the California Society of Park and Recreation Educators.

Dr. Sasidharan’s research includes the evaluation and implementation of grass-roots tourism initiatives, involving local community participation in planning and decision making for sustainable tourism development in the Dominican Republic, Finland, Jamaica, Romania, Slovenia, Tanzania and Turkey. His research specialty is in the area of sustainability assessment and Corporate Social Responsibility evaluation in tourism. He holds a Master’s Degree in Tourism Policy and Management from the University of Birmingham, UK and a Doctorate in Leisure Studies from The Pennsylvania State University, USA.

Dr. Sasidharan’s international research addresses the concept of sustainable development and Corporate Social Responsibility in relation to the use of tourism and recreation resources from a multidisciplinary perspective, with emphasis on examining these issues within the context of future trends. His research focuses on the evaluation and implementation of grass-roots tourism initiatives, involving local community participation in planning and decision making for sustainable tourism development at the destination level. Additionally, he specializes in the examination of socio-demographic trends (such as multiculturalism, aging population) and environmental changes (especially, global climate change and resource constraints) and their implications for tourism development and management. 

Ron Solimon
Ron Solimon is the President & CEO of the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Inc., a state-chartered not-for-profit corporation, and Indian Pueblos Marketing, Inc., a federally-chartered for-profit corporation. Both corporations are owned & operated by the 19 Pueblo Indian tribes of New Mexico and headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He is a member of the Pueblo of Laguna Indian Tribe of New Mexico. His Native American heritage also includes Zuni Pueblo.

Ron earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a major in Marketing from New Mexico State University in 1973 and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 1976.

During his career Ron has received many honors and recognition. Recent awards and recognition include the following: in 2008 the Junior Achievement of New Mexico inducted Ron into the New Mexico Business Hall of Fame as a “Business Laureate”; in 2009 the New Mexico Office of African American Affairs gave Ron an “Outstanding Achievement Award for Educational Services Rendered Toward the Betterment of African Americans and Other Underserved Citizens of the State of New Mexico”; in 2009 New Mexico Secretary of State Mary Herrera paid tribute to Ron “For His Devotion and Endless Dedication to the Native American Electorate, Native American Voting Rights and the Native American Election Information Program”; and also in 2009 Ron and his wife Elaine were selected as among “New Mexico’s Top 10 Power Duos” and were featured in “The New Mexico Business Weekly Power Book for 2009-2010.”

Travis Suazo
Born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Travis is from the Pueblos of Laguna, Acoma and Taos. Travis has a diverse marketing, advertising and tribal tourism background. He currently serves as the project manager, at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for an upcoming special exhibition – 100 Years of State & Federal Policy: Its Impact on Pueblo Nations. The exhibition is graciously supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and is also tied to the New Mexico State Centennial celebration.

Travis received his marketing degree from, the Anderson School of Management at the University of New Mexico. He has served on several local non-profit boards that serve the local American Indian community and the Albuquerque community that he resides. He volunteers as a youth sports coach throughout the year and when he’s not coaching loves to play golf in his free time….a lot of golf!

Valerie Taliman
Valerie Taliman, an enrolled citizen of the Navajo Nation, is a media consultant with 20 years of experience specializing in branding, raising business profiles, media campaigns, newspaper and magazine production, and multi-media promotions using print, radio, TV and social media strategies. She is also a trainer on media skills and social media marketing, and represents a variety of clients.

Valerie is currently West Coast Editor for Indian Country Today Media Network (www.ictmn.com) and Communications Strategist for FNX: First Nations Experience Television, the first all-Native television network in the United States. She is also former co-producer of Native America Calling, an internationally syndicated Native talk radio show, and is a former managing editor of Indian Country Today newspaper. Her company, Three Sisters Media, published magazines and provided public relations services to more than 30 tribal clients in the U.S. and Canada. Her experience includes a decade of United Nations advocacy and media work, focused on environmental and social justice issues.

As a journalist, Valerie has been honored with numerous editorial awards and is widely published in newspapers, magazines and college textbooks. In 2011, her series on murdered and missing Native women in Canada won the Richard LaCourse Award for Excellence in Investigation Reporting. From 2005 to 2009, Valerie was Director of Communications for the Indian Law Resource Center, and managed a successful strategic communications campaign to advocate for the 2007 adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. She also developed media strategies and messaging for human rights campaigns for indigenous peoples in Central and South America.

In 2003, Valerie co-chaired Amnesty International’s Indigenous People’s Task Force that documented human rights violations against Native peoples in the United States and Canada. She also served on the organizing committees for two national Native Peoples Native Homelands Climate Change conferences funded by NASA. Based in the Southwest, her writing appears in Indian Country Today Media Network, Huffington Post, RaceTalk and the Progressive Media Project. She is also the proud mother of four children in college. Contact her at valerietaliman@gmail.com.

Andrew Te Whaiti
Andrew Te Whaiti is the Managing Director of The Department of Discovery. Andrew has long been at the forefront of tourism, specializing in global tourism planning, feasibility, governance and management of tourism businesses and marketing. He has created a proven methodology with an emphasis on managing the co-existence of tourism and culture. An MBA graduate, Andrew has established an international reputation in the field of Cultural Tourism.

For almost five years Andrew was the CEO of the New Zealand Government owned iconic tourism business The New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute (Trading as Te Puia) in Rotorua, which attracts 500,000 annual visitors. He has consulted to a range of government destination marketing authorities and tourism businesses in Hawai’i, Fiji, New Zealand and USA, most recently selected as a member of a government appointed team that reviewed and reset the Tourism New Zealand long-term strategy. Andrew was a principal keynote speaker at the Native Hawaiian Tourism Conference and then the Hawaii Tourism Conference on the subject of cultural tourism and destination marketing. Andrew is a regular guest lecturer at universities.

Paige Williams
Paige Williams joined the Chickasaw Nation in October 2008 as the Director of Tourism. Paige works cohesively with all elements of the Chickasaw Nation including the Chickasaw Cultural Center; Winstar, Riverwind and the other gaming centers; and various other historical and cultural avenues owned and operated by the tribe. Paige maintains close partnerships with all communities within the Chickasaw Nation to highlight tourism in south-central Oklahoma, as well as promote a common unified brand and message. Currently Paige serves as a board member for the US Travel Association, Oklahoma Tourism Industry Association, Norman Convention and Visitors Bureau and Allied Arts.

Prior to joining the Chickasaw Nation, Ms. Williams, an Oklahoma native, lived and worked in Washington, DC as a member of the Convention Services team for Destination DC. Paige has also conducted consulting work with the Guatemalan government in the Lake Atitlan region concerning fourteen indigenous Guatemalan cultures. Spending a month in the Guatemalan region, with a consulting team, Paige evaluated the areas’ community based tourism initiatives and unique cultures, resulting in a tourism strategic plan and recommendations for sustainable development.

Paige Williams holds a Masters of Tourism degree from The George Washington University in Sustainable Destination Management, with a Bachelor of Arts in Hotel Restaurant Administration from Oklahoma State University.