Missions Initiative
Five-Year Program for Collaboration
Between
United States National Park Service and the Mexico Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia
Format
Guiding Principles
Areas of Mutual Agreement
Program Areas
Projects
Measures of Success
Guiding Principle I. – Partnerships and Communication
The international, multi-disciplinary Missions Initiative partnership seeks to re-establish historic links among individual sites and communities in Mexico and United States while respecting the diverse economic, cultural, geographical, and institutional contexts of the region.
Areas of Mutual Agreement:
A. Greater coordination of ongoing mission programs requires reliable, user-friendly communication links among various stakeholders. In addition to providing a much-needed forum for internal communication within participating agencies, the Missions Initiative creates opportunities for regular exchange among research professionals, resource interpreters and members of the public interested in contributing to the quality of resource management programs.
Program Areas:
Provision and exchange of technical information; the conduct of and participation in workshops, training courses, conferences, and symposia in topics of professional and technical interest; the exchange of specialists in fields of mutual interest of both nations; and planning, research, and training in other areas of interest; and other cooperative activities as jointly agreed upon.
Projects:
· Translation: All materials published associated with the Missions Initiative will include both English and Spanish translations.
· Website: Development of project website for updates on Missions Initiative programs/events and links to existing websites of participating agencies.
· Conferences: Establishment of annual or semi-annual conferences on current mission research and cultural resource management practices.
· News articles: Publication of news and feature articles in a Missions Initiative newsletter, distributed to site visitors and prospective program partners, and posted on the website.
· Workshops: Conduct a Taller Internacional de Conservación y Restauración de Arquitectura de Tierra. (International Workshop on the Conservation and Restoration of Earthen Architecture Arizona/Sonora.)
Measures of Success:
· Website update.
· Successful TICRAT with others programmed.
· Attend and present at National Park Service conferences
· Common Ground SMRC Revista and other articles published.
· Materials translations.
B. Encourage ongoing cooperation in the analysis of topics related to the conservation and management of cultural heritage sites and in the development and operation of protected areas and sites for the conservation of cultural heritage:
Program Areas:
Identify methods used for disparate conservation oversight activities; tools; techniques and skills; and materials.
Projects:
· Develop a best case studies program. Research and training for the inventory and documentation of cultural heritage sites and techniques or technologies related to those activities. Perform literary and on-site research to populate a consistent component and criteria database. Analyze data with the goal of discovering the best case scenarios.
Measures of Success:
· Publish a web-based Best Practices Case Studies document.
Guiding Principle II. – Benefit to Communities
The Missions Initiative encourages institutional responses representing the collective interests of Mexico, the United States, federal and state resource agencies, the Roman Catholic Church, research, and non-profit organizations to promote the diverse economic, cultural, and geographical resources of the Mission sites.
Areas of Mutual Agreement:
A. Conduct appropriate meetings and specialized studies to coordinate the actions of the United States and Mexico in promoting the objectives and terms of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage:
Program Areas:
Identify opportunities for heritage tourism throughout the region, through the marketing of tour packages; support the mission sites as long-standing anchors of the communities they were originally intended to serve; and revitalize by international tourism strategies designed to deliver direct social and economic benefits to host communities.
Projects:
· Coordination of binational mission tour programs with state trails associations and existing network of Caminos Reales.
· Institutional agreements with non-profit organizations and private tour providers supporting heritage tourism, i.e., Chihuahua’s Sus Misiones Coloniales, Tucson-based La Ruta de Sonora, and Kino Mission tours offered by Southwest Mission Research Center.
· Continued development of community and institutional capacity to support economic development through appropriate tourism.
· The preparation of programs and materials for general education and public information to increase understanding to support the conservation of cultural heritage sites. Develop a map similar to the National Geographic Sustainable Destinations partnership with the southwest.
· Research the role of cultural tourism in support of the protection and conservation of cultural heritage sites. Investigate and analyze similar organizational structures such as the Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Area for components applicable to the Missions Initiative.
· Develop relationships with the Arizona State Office of Tourism and local community and private economic organizations.
· Specific Trail Visibility:
o Expand signage planning program, certify sign additional sites, and build new partnerships.
o International Initiatives: BLM and NPS trail administration will build upon the strong partnership with Mexico by expanding landscape documentation training to include significant trail landscapes in Mexico; working with Mexico to support the nomination of El Camino de La Plata, the Mexican portion of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, to the World Heritage List, and assist efforts to consider a United States nomination.
o Complete in-field trail inventory and establish base-line trail conditions for federal protection components.
o Provide assistance for resource inventory, documentation, and evaluation on non-federal lands.
o Implement data sharing processes to give ready access to trail data for planners, project managers, and developers.
Measures of Success:
· Publish Heritage map.
· Documented community support (letters, financial assistance, recognition, etc.) of the Missions Initiative.
· Continued strong visibility and community awareness of the trails initiative.
B. Either the United States National Park Service (NPS) or the Mexico Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) may propose additional specific areas of mutual interest and benefit for cooperative activities, which shall be jointly evaluated and approved by the program coordinators.
Program Areas:
Encourage involvement the participation of other organizations or agencies aside from INAH and NPS in the development and implementation of activities within the scope of the Memorandum of Understanding.
Projects:
· Identify likely partners that could benefit the Missions Initiative program.
· Update and promulgate the Memorandum of Understanding between NPS and INAH at five-year intervals.
Measures of Success:
· Successful partner outreach.
· A five-year, signed Memorandum of Understanding in place.
Guiding Principle III. – Technical and Financial Collaboration
A collaborative view is maintained by developing accessible, common information resources and interpretation. Technical and financial support will be broad-based from diverse sources.
Areas of Mutual Agreement:
A. Achieve technical cooperation to identify, document, conserve, and interpret cultural sites of importance and within the territory of each nation.
Program Areas:
Create opportunities for consolidating research results relating to Spanish Colonial history throughout the southwestern United States and northern Mexico; encourage the collection of relevant data by soliciting active involvement from university faculty and staff, as well as historians and archivists of the Roman Catholic Church; and disseminate research by sharing it with individual sites, affiliated research institutions, and management authorities, as well as the public.
Projects:
· Develop institutional agreements on the coordination and use of the existing Spanish Colonial research databases. Establish a meta-data base to provide one common portal to each discrete database in existence.
· Establish consistent criteria for monitoring and evaluation and documentation of individual sites under various institutional jurisdictions.
· Continue support for university students and interns as future professionals in the fields of Spanish Colonial research and cultural resource management.
· Establish university chairs and major degree programs at U.S. and Mexican educational institutions.
· Develop specialized historical studies and interpretive programs on cultural sites, particularly those of importance to the history and pre-history of both the United Mexican States and the United States of America.
· Establish professional credit criteria for those attending Missions Initiative related conferences and workshops.
Measures of Success:
· Accessible database.
· Professional research publications
B. Develop the Missions Initiative into a sustainable program; self funded and independent of the National Park Service except for special projects as defined by the NPS.
Program Areas:
Program and financial development.
Projects:
· Investigate operational and funding models for non-profit organizations to determine which is best suited to the needs of the Missions Initiative.
· Increase funding by becoming adept at identifying and pursuing funding opportunities.
· Pursue 501.3.c status.
Measures of Success:
· Established, broad-based, self-sustaining program.
· Legal establishment of Missions Initiative as a 501.3.c.