About partners for livable

Visit the website of Cultural Tourism DC at 
www.culturaltourismdc.org to learn about their current 
projects and community partners in Washington, DC.
Capitol building from Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC. Photo credit: Orhan Cam.
continued on p. 38.

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Cultural Heritage Tourism
“NEw DIRECTIONS: CULTURAL TOURISM DC” 
Excerpt from Partners’ report to Cultural Tourism DC
Cultural Tourism DC is at a crossroads that can best be represented using the metaphor of a compass and its 
four ordinal points—north, south, east, west—of directions local leaders have suggested as viable options for the 
future of the organization in Washington, DC.
North: Stay the Course and Focus on the Visitor
The northern route stays true to the Cultural Tourism DC mission with little change. Retain the focus upon 
heritage and culture—make it understandable, make it observable and make it visible whether by public 
transportation or by tours. Continue the excellence that was begun with its founder and has been sustained by 
several executive directors since. Focus upon developing off-the-mall experiences for visitors to enhance their 
understanding of the rich neighborhood heritage of our nation’s capital. This “value added” approach will enrich 
the experience of both the visitor and the resident.
South: Be a Community Builder First
This path is 180 degrees from the northern route. A number of individuals interviewed highlighted that Cultural 
Tourism DC works with sensitivity, engages local people, researches and respects local heritage and culture, and 
develops a broad understanding among the community of those who have gone before and their value. These 
are valuable organizational characteristics that position Cultural Tourism DC as a key asset. These assets can be 
deployed to build community and empower neighborhoods while fulfilling the mission of the organization.
These voices say Cultural Tourism DC is one of the few, true responsive friends that every neighborhood from 
Anacostia to Northwest, from Southeast to Northeast, needs to have. each of these neighborhoods should 
celebrate its heritage, its heroes and heroines and its historic resources. Thus, Cultural Tourism DC should form 
a closer relationship with the DC Historical Society, the DC Arts and Humanities Commission, and the Cultural 
Alliance of Greater Washington to be a delivery of resources to neighborhoods across the city that want respect 
more than visitation: respect for their value, respect for their heritage and a voice within government or close to 
the circles of government to advocate for better goods and services relating to social, economic, design, and 
planning needs.