PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A Providence man with a plan to expand multicultural tourism in Rhode Island is the recipient of a $300,000 innovation fellowship awarded by the Rhode Island Foundation.
Raymond Two Hawks Watson is the 2016 winner of the three-year grant, funded by philanthropists Letitia and John Carter. “Letitia and I admire all of the applicants for their talent, creativity and optimism about the potential of our state. We look forward to watching the constructive change that comes as a result of this year’s fellowship,” said Mr. Carter.
Watson is the executive director of the Mount Hope Neighborhood Association.
He also created the Providence Cultural Equity Initiative, which recently held the International Indigenous Peoples Cultural Conference at Roger Williams Park.
“Ray has an impressive strategy for creating change and addressing the challenges our state faces by focusing on our greatest natural resource – our people,” said Neil Steinberg, the Foundation’s president and CEO. “We applaud Letitia and John Carter for their investment in Rhode Island’s potential.”
Watson will capitalize on Rhode Island’s cultural heritage, history and diversity to drive economic development and improve cultural equity and social cohesion through his Providence Cultural Equity Initiative (PCEI).
“It is an untapped resource for drawing more and more diverse tourism to Rhode Island, which combined with Providence’s world-class artistic reputation and standing, will serve as an economic stimulant for the state’s economy,” said Watson, who grew up in the Fox Point and Mount Hope neighborhoods of Providence.
Watson maintains that Asian, African-American, Latino, Native-American and other racial, ethnic and national cultures have tremendous societal and tourism potential because they are often overlooked.
“The goal is to cohesively and sustainably solidify greater Providence as the cultural heritage capitol of the Northeast,” said Watson.
To support his vision, Watson cites data from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Cultural tourism accounts for 78 percent of U.S. travelers—some 118 million tourists—who include arts and heritage in their trips each year. They stay longer and spend 36 percent more money than other kinds of travelers do, contributing more than $192 billion annually to the U.S. economy.
