Paula Nelson at the Salzburg Seminar with Fabio Santos of Project Phakama, an arts exchange program involving young people, artists and educators from different cultural backgrounds.

Local poet, artist, singer and songwriter Paula Nelson recently attended the Salzburg Seminar in Austria, where she participated in “Cultural Institutions without Walls: New Models of Arts and Community Interaction.”

She joined international artists, cultural managers and other imaginative thinkers working in the areas of culture, education, tourism and economic development at Salzburg’s Leopoldskron Castle, carrying on a tradition begun in 1947 when graduates of Harvard University founded the Salzburg Seminar to bring leaders together from around the world to share ideas and contribute to the development of peace and intercultural understanding.

Nelson is a shared employee of Cherokee Preservation Foundation (CPFdn) and the Cherokee Cooperative Extension, where she serves as community development coordinator for the Cherokee communities. CPFdn sponsored her participation so she could learn about unusual and successful examples of arts and community interactions to understand better how cultural institutions can play an even more vital role in their communities.

“I saw that the cultural institutions that are successful are always moving, always growing, drawing on the talents, ideas and input of their people, and changing as the world changes,” said Nelson. “The environment for our discussions in Salzburg made us feel safe to express ourselves honestly and really sparked ideas.”

Nelson wants to help cultivate a similar environment at home. “Our tribe’s history is still being written,” she said. “I want to inspire young people in particular make their mark.”

She plans to create a program or organization that will encourage cultural education and individual expression through performance. “When people utilize poetry and music, we can say what we feel we need to say, and people get it,” she said. “Slam poetry – which goes beyond readings and is very dramatic – is a very effective way of expressing the spoken and written word. I want to create opportunities and venues that give young people and other tribal members an outlet for what is on their minds. People need to express themselves thoughtfully and honestly. When they do, they begin to know who they are as individuals and that strengthens our entire community.”

Nelson is the songwriter, composer, vocalist and producer of a CD called C.H.A.N.T., or Cherokee Hope and New Traditions. Recently she became an internationally published poet through a book project called To Topos American Indigenous Poetry.