Nova Scotia is the birthplace of African presence in Canada going back over 400 years. There are over 50 African Nova Scotian communities in Nova Scotia and 71.8% of African Nova Scotians have roots in the province going back three generations or more. This deep heritage is part of the fabric of our province and African-Nova Scotian tourism operators are helping travellers connect with the history, food, and music of their culture.
In celebration of African Heritage Month, we’re sharing success stories from some of our African-Nova Scotian tourism partners. Give a shout-out to a business or attraction in your community that does a great job sharing African-Nova Scotian culture or heritage using the hashtags: #BHM2022 and #BlackEntreprenuers.
Elevate & Explore Black Nova Scotia
René Boudreau founded Elevate & Explore Black Nova Scotia to celebrate and bring awareness of the amazing Black-owned businesses throughout the province, and to help Black travellers see themselves as part of the Nova Scotia tourism experience. In addition to her social media initiatives, Elevate & Explore has worked with businesses like Ambassatours to host the Black Excellence Boat Cruise, and I Heart Bikes to offer a bike tour highlighting African Nova Scotian products and places.
In 2021, the company was accepted into a mentorship program through American Express called Blueprint: Backing BIPOC Businesses, geared towards business owners who are Black, Indigenous, and other minorities that includes a $10,000 grant. Upcoming projects include an official website and new itineraries in partnership with Settled Nomads.
Tourism Nova Scotia has worked with Elevate & Explore Nova Scotia and Unbound Media, also a Black-owned business, to capture photos and share content that highlights the diversity of our tourism operators and travellers in our province.
Black Loyalist Heritage Centre
Partnerships are vital to creating dynamic tourism experiences that draw travellers to our communities, and the Taste of Birchtown package is a great example of how businesses and organizations can work together! Created with support from Tourism Nova Scotia’s RADIATE Tourism Program, Taste of Birchtown invites visitors on a guided tour of the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre. Then, visitors head to Boxing Rock Brewing Company in Shelburne for craft-beer tasting flights with four brews inspired by local history and places, including Back to Birchtown, a collaboration beer with the Change is Brewing Collective – paired up with a delicious charcuterie board.
Tourism Nova Scotia had several photos for the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre to use to promote this package from our partnership with Elevate and Explore Black Nova Scotia the previous year. Through the RADIATE Tourism Program this year, the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre ran social media ads to promote the package. The first Facebook ad had 758,934 impressions more than 4,500 clicks through to the package. The Black Loyalist Heritage Centre reported an uptick in engagement and followers on their page following the ad. Their second Facebook ad will launch in coming weeks.
You can find more opportunities to explore African heritage and culture in Nova Scotia here.