Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC)
ITAC is the national association for Indigenous tourism, funded mainly by federal departments and by Destination Canada, the federal Crown corporation for tourism marketing. In 2026 ITAC paused its programs and laid off nearly all staff. Indigenous businesses approved for grants reported going unpaid for months.
Federal funding to ITAC
Destination Canada's contributions
| Period | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $2 million in funding and $950,000 in-kind support, announced publicly | Destination Canada, July 16, 2021 |
| 2022-27 | 5-year MOU signed March 2022; base investment of $2.2M a year for the first two years, plus about $1M in-kind in year one | DC release A-2026-003, P1 p.31 |
| FY 2023 | $3,426,655 | ITAC audited statements, P2 p.45 |
| FY 2024 | $2,350,000 | ITAC audited statements, P2 p.45 |
| Jan 2026 | A payment to ITAC; amount withheld Section 18(a), 18(b) | DC release, P4 p.62 |
2026, as the records and reporting show it
Newest first. "DC release" means Destination Canada's response to access request A-2026-003; "P3 p.28" means Part 3, page 28 of that release.
- Oct 21
Destination Canada releases 456 pages, about 300 withheld in full or nearly in full. A complaint is filed with the Information Commissioner of Canada the same day.
DC release; OIC complaint - Aug 12
The 10-business-day period for ITAC to cure its default expires.
DC release, P4 p.54 - Jul 23
Destination Canada issues ITAC a formal Notice of Default on its 2026 Global Partnering Agreement. The list of unmet deliverables is withheld Section 21(1)(b).
DC release, P3 pp.28–29 - Jul 9
Destination Canada board slides titled "Partnering Agreement: Termination & Considerations" and "Management Recommendation". Content withheld.
DC release, P4 pp.57–64 - Jun 22
ITAC's CEO says Destination Canada, which previously contributed $2.7M to $3M, has frozen its funding.
- May 15
Indigenous Tourism B.C., Indigenous Tourism Ontario and the Nova Scotia Indigenous Tourism Enterprise Network formally separate from ITAC, citing financial management and transparency concerns.
- May 8
ITAC pauses all programs; its CEO becomes the only active employee.
- May 6
A May 5 letter from Indigenous businesses and advocates to ITAC's board, copied to Destination Canada's CEO, is circulated inside Destination Canada as "FYI for context only - no actions needed".
DC release, P4 p.94 - Apr 30
ITAC's CEO told CBC that 48 project grants were still outstanding. ISED said it would review the situation.
- Apr 22
Destination Canada briefing note on its 2026 agreement with ITAC; the annual value is withheld.
DC release, P3 p.30 - Apr 22
Elders, artists and vendors report going unpaid after ITAC's February conference in Edmonton. More on the conference.
- March
ITAC staff unofficially tell Destination Canada that most staff were laid off. Destination Canada informs its board.
DC release, P3 p.30 - Feb 17–19
ITAC hosts the International Indigenous Tourism Conference in Edmonton.
- January
Destination Canada pays ITAC; amount withheld.
DC release, P4 p.62
What the released records show, and what they hide
- The agreements are almost entirely blacked out.Only cover pages of the MOU and Global Partnering Agreements #2 to #4 were released; terms, schedules and appendices are withheld.P1 pp.3–137
- Funding values are withheld even where they are public.The value of the 2021 agreement is withheld although Destination Canada announced it, and ITAC's audited statements in the same release show the yearly contributions.P1 p.2; P2 p.45; P3 p.30
- Termination was under review by July 2026.Slide titles survive; the recommendation does not.P4 pp.57–64
- Legal advice was sought from April 2026.Senior emails about ITAC are withheld as solicitor-client privileged.P3 pp.1–3, 25–33
- An internal audit touches ITAC.One page is withheld as a draft internal audit report.P3 p.37
- Records were not found for several questions.Nothing was released on how operators were chosen for national campaigns, or on the Indigenous Tourism Destination Fund.Request items 4 and 5
One director, three boards
During the period under review, one person held roles on the funder's board, the national association's board and the Alberta association's board. These roles are matters of public record.
The person is Brenda Holder. No allegation is made against them. The question is structural: when a director of the funder also helps lead the funded organization, how were conflicts declared and managed? Destination Canada released no recusal records, and withheld what the declarations say.
Access requests about ITAC
| Status | Body | File | Asked about |
|---|---|---|---|
| Complaint filed 456 pages released Oct 21, mostly withheld; complaint to the Information Commissioner Oct 21 | Destination Canada | A-2026-003 | Agreements with ITAC, funding decisions, board records, conflicts of interest |
| In progress Received August 24, 2026 | Indigenous Services Canada | A-2026-00297 | ITAC and the Indigenous Tourism Fund: agreements, the Micro and Small Business Stream, reports, recipients, eligibility checks and audits |
| In progress Received August 24, 2026 | Indigenous Services Canada | A-2026-00298 | The COVID-19 Indigenous Tourism Stimulus Development Fund administered by ITAC, 2020 to 2022 |
| Forwarded Sent Aug 27; forwarded to the teams that audit ISC and ISED, Sep 15 | Auditor General of Canada | Letter | Suggested performance audit of federal funding delivered through ITAC |
National reporting, April to June 2026
Records cited on this page
- Destination Canada, response to access request A-2026-003, October 21, 2026 (letter and Response Parts 1–4).
- ITAC 2023-24 and 2024-25 annual reports and audited statements, as released in Part 2 of that response.
- News stories as linked in each section.