Creative Nassau was formed in 2008 by my late husband Jackson Burnside III after we attended a UNESCO Creative Cities Conference on Creative Tourism in Santa Fe which resonated so clearly with our Doongalik Studios' vision statement that by the year 2020 more persons will travel to The Bahamas because of its art, culture and heritage rather than merely for its sun, sand, and sea.

Creative Nassau is based on three platforms of community which we have lost (stick o' fire analogy), education (which we are losing big time) an celebration. We believe that we should focus on building our people first by encouraging an awareness and appreciation for who we are as a people because cultural self identity builds pride, self esteem and self worth, which leads to stronger social cohesion and economic empowerment. We are The Bahamas.

For too long we have taken our creative expressions for granted, ignored their importance and their value, and relied on an 'outside in' concept to sustain our development, when we only need to drop our bucket where we stand (tell story), look inside for our own 'true true' resources - good old Bahamian art, culture and heritage.