We Are the Land, the Land Is Us: Carrying Forward Talaysay Tours with Talaysay Campo

Season 6: Indigenous Voices of This Generation

In this episode of the Matriarch Movement Podcast's Indigenous Voices of This Generation season, host Shayla sits down with the daughter and successor of Talaysay Tours' founder, — an Indigenous entrepreneur, wellness advocate, and keynote speaker whose work bridges culture, sustainability, tourism, and economic reconciliation. Raised on the Sunshine Coast and rooted in both the Squamish and Shíshálh Nations, she shares how a family teaching - "we are the land, and the land is us" - shaped her path from a barefoot kid at Porpoise Bay Provincial Park to running walking tours across Vancouver, Squamish, and Whistler. The conversation traces the company's origin in 2001, growing up alongside her mother's entrepreneurial journey, the loss and revival of cultural knowledge after the Potlatch Ban and residential schools, and the little-known story of the Great Fire that shaped early Vancouver. She also opens up about building an Indigenous apparel line and skincare brand as extensions of cultural reclamation, what it means to mentor the next generation, and how she defines matriarchy in her own life and community. A conversation about land stewardship, intergenerational knowledge, and building Indigenous-led businesses that reflect who Indigenous people truly are. (00:00) Territorial acknowledgment and Season intro: Indigenous Voices of This Generation
(01:06) Guest introduction with Talaysay Campo
(02:12) Guest opens in language, shares ancestral village and territory
(03:06) The guiding phrase: "We are the land, and the land is us"
(05:04) How Talaysay Tours began in 2001 on the Sunshine Coast, growing up alongside the business
(07:49) Childhood at Porpoise Bay Provincial Park; learning "sales" before she could spell
(09:50) Going to business school at UBC, then joining the company full-time
(12:35) The emotional and practical roots of starting a tour company as an Indigenous woman
(14:03) Building community for cultural land ambassadors reconnecting with their nations (52+ guides hired since 2001)
(17:30) On hierarchy vs. potlatch values in business partnerships
(18:12) Company growth: from a family of 5 to 28 guides; new tour categories (Talking Trees, Spoken Treasures, Talking Totems, Salish Sea)
(19:15) Healthcare-worker discounts and free tours as a form of reciprocity
(21:01) What to expect on a Talking Trees tour; storytelling as the strongest teacher
(24:42) The story of the Great Fire of Vancouver
(31:15) The mission: helping guests feel grounded, redirected, and reconnected to the land
(32:24) The bedtime story of Creator naming the trees — and why the Western Hemlock bows its head
(34:29) Traditional medicinal uses of Western Hemlock and its role pre-contact
(35:12) The Tem Cloud herring ceremony and its return after 120+ years
(38:53) On Indigenous futurism: returning to original ways of caretaking and stewardship
(41:08) Community touchpoints: Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week, Squamish Nation Powwow, Bill Reid Gallery
(42:15) Advice for Indigenous entrepreneurs: asking for community help, values as a compass
(44:36) Lessons from touring in New Zealand and witnessing land-first tourism models
(47:50) 2026 goals: healthcare industry partnerships, wellness and movement offerings, getting cultural teachings into school textbooks
(54:54) Defining matriarchy: presence, truth-telling, and service to community
(57:07) Closing thanks and where to find tours, skincare, and apparel @talaysay_campo @nenaglacial https://www.talaysay.com/

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