The Meaning
of YATISTA
The name YATISTA comes from the Wendat language and means Fire. Founded and proudly incorporated in Wendake, on the Onyionhwentsïio’, the unceded homeland of the Wendat people on Québec, Canada. YATISTA Consulting Group draws its identity from a symbol that has sustained our people for generations.
Our Story
YATISTA Consulting Group was founded on a simple belief: Indigenous knowledge, leadership, and innovation have an essential role to play in shaping the future of tourism, conservation, destination development, and sustainable economies.
For more than two decades, our founders and partners have worked alongside Indigenous communities, governments, international organizations, and protected areas across the globe.
Throughout that journey, one lesson remained constant: The most successful projects are those built with communities, not simply for them.
Rather than operating as a traditional consulting firm, we assemble multidisciplinary teams with the cultural understanding, technical expertise, and international experience tailored specifically to each client’s unique needs.
Whether partnering with an Indigenous Nation, a government ministry, or a global development agency, our objective remains unified: creating practical, culturally grounded solutions.
We generate lasting outcomes that produce measurable social, cultural, environmental, spiritual, and economic benefits for generations to come.
The Meaning of YATISTA
The name YATISTA comes from the Wendat language and means Fire.
Founded and proudly registered in Wendake, on the Onyionhwentsïio’, the unceded homeland of the Wendat Nation in Québec, Canada. YATISTA Consulting Group draws its identity from a symbol that has sustained our people for generations.
Fire is life. It provides warmth and nourishment, but its meaning reaches far beyond survival. Around the fire, people gather. Food is prepared and shared. Stories are told. Songs are carried forward. Knowledge passes between Elders, families, and younger generations. It is a place where we listen, learn, celebrate, reflect, make decisions, and strengthen the relationships that hold communities together.
As long as the fire continues to burn, our stories can continue to live. Knowledge can continue to be shared. And good food will continue to bring people together.
Fire also carries a powerful lesson about transformation. It can reshape what surrounds us, yet from that transformation can come renewal, regeneration, and new growth. It reminds us that progress carries responsibility: to honour what came before us, protect what must endure, and create the conditions for those who follow to thrive.
That responsibility fuels our burning desire to pass the torch forward to the next Seven Generations.
For YATISTA, passing the torch means sharing knowledge, creating opportunities for youth, strengthening Indigenous leadership, and helping communities and Nations build tourism and development on their own terms. It also means working alongside communities that have not always had equal access to investment, markets, tools, research, or opportunities, supporting them in strengthening the fire that already exists within their cultures, knowledge, and aspirations.
We do not believe consulting begins by arriving with the answers. It begins by gathering around the same fire: listening, exchanging knowledge, respecting different worldviews, asking better questions, and building solutions together.
Our role is to bring people, expertise, experience, and ideas together in ways that honour culture, strengthen communities, protect lands and knowledge, and create meaningful opportunities for the future.
Because the decisions we make today become part of the story inherited by those who follow.
YATISTA is our fire, a source of purpose, connection, and renewal that guides our work today while illuminating a path for the next Seven Generations.
Why YATISTA Was Created
The challenges facing Indigenous communities and destinations are increasingly complex, requiring expertise that goes far beyond traditional tourism planning.
YATISTA Consulting Group was created to meet this need by assembling multidisciplinary teams from international backgrounds. We deliver practical, evidence based, and culturally grounded solutions ensuring Indigenous self determination remains at the heart of every strategy.
Governance
Integrated structures respecting Indigenous leadership and legal autonomy.
Conservation
Preserving cultural integrity, sacred lands, and natural ecosystems.
Innovation
Evidence-based methodologies, consumer insights, and market tools.
Leadership
Capacity building for long-term community economic growth.
Our Impact.
A legacy of measurable results, empowering Indigenous communities, fostering global partnerships, and driving sustainable development worldwide.
Years of Leadership
Projects Delivered
Countries Supported
Trilingual Operations: English, French & SpanishStrategic Partners
Continents Reached
Our Core Values.
Authenticity
Begins with people. Every strategy reflects the voices and cultural aspirations of the community, strengthening identity rather than diluting it.
Stewardship
Healthy communities require healthy ecosystems. We advocate approaches respecting ecological limits and preserving cultural heritage for future generations.
Collaboration
Bridging Indigenous communities, institutions, and global experts to co-create sustainable solutions that deliver lasting collective value.
Innovation
Solving complex challenges by pairing global methodologies and emerging technologies with ancestral knowledge systems.
Seven Generations
Evaluating present decisions through their long-term legacy—generating enduring cultural, social, environmental, and economic balance.
Meet Our Team.
Sébastien Desnoyers
Co-Founder and CEO
Sébastien Desnoyers
Co-Founder and CEOSébastien Desnoyers Picard is an Indigenous leader from the Wendat Nation in Quebec, Canada, and Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Yatista Consulting Group. A former elected Chief of his Nation, he brings more than 20 years of experience in Indigenous tourism, destination development, marketing, branding, and Indigenous economic development.
Sébastien has played a leading role in advancing Indigenous-led tourism in Canada and internationally, working with Indigenous organizations, governments, destinations, and global partners to strengthen cultural sovereignty while generating meaningful economic and social benefits for Indigenous communities.
Previously, he served as President and CEO of Destination Original Indigenous Tourism (DO-IT) and as Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC). During his career, he has led major initiatives including Destination Indigenous and The Original Original, helping strengthen the positioning, authenticity, and international recognition of Indigenous tourism.
Known for combining strategic leadership with a data-driven approach, Sébastien has championed research, tourism inventories, market intelligence, branding, and evidence-based strategies to support Indigenous tourism development, policy, investment, and market growth.
As CEO of Yatista Consulting Group, Sébastien leads the firm’s strategic direction, business development, positioning, and partnerships, drawing on his extensive network and experience across Canada and internationally. His work is grounded in the principle that Indigenous tourism must be led by Indigenous Peoples, creating opportunities that strengthen culture, self-determination, community prosperity, and long-term impact.
Jean – Philippe Le Moigne
Co-Founder and COO
Jean – Philippe Le Moigne
Co-Founder and COOJean-Philippe Le Moigne is Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Yatista Consulting Group and Director of Development at Destination Original Indigenous Tourism (DO-IT), with more than 22 years of international experience in Indigenous-led tourism, sustainable tourism, destination development, and protected area management.
A Forest Engineer with a Master’s degree in Tourism Management and Territorial Development, he has specialized expertise in Indigenous Tourism, sustainable and rural tourism, ecotourism, protected areas, and territorial development. He has also conducted research, published, and served as a lecturer in these fields.
Jean-Philippe has worked extensively across Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, and Canada, collaborating with Indigenous grassroots organizations, community leaders, governments, tourism organizations, and public institutions. Through his international work and networks, he has also developed strong connections with Indigenous tourism organizations and leaders across Africa, Australia, Europe, and the broader Asia-Pacific region.
From 2018 to 2025, he served as Agent for Latin America and the Caribbean for the World Indigenous Tourism Alliance (WINTA) and has contributed to key Indigenous Tourism publications developed by UN Tourism.
At Yatista, Jean-Philippe contributes to strategic and operational development, international business development, partnerships, and the design and implementation of complex multi-stakeholder projects. His work combines international experience with a strong commitment to Indigenous self-determination, cultural integrity, and lasting benefits for Indigenous communities and territories.
