In Peru, Sustainable Tourism Revives a Forgotten Andean Community

Not long ago, Mullak’as Misminay was a forgotten Andean community situated in the middle of the Sacred Valley of the Inca. The 500 families who lived there struggled to earn a decent income through subsistence agriculture and textile production, missing a huge opportunity to earn a secure livelihood through sustainable tourism. With help from Condor Travel, a Rainforest Alliance Verified™ tour operator, Mullak’as Misminay residents have made incredible strides. Today, they are a powerful example of the potential of community-based rural tourism to change lives. Since 2008, Condor Travel has helped the community to generate new revenue from tourism while promoting the cultural identity of its people. We spoke with Daysy Ángeles, a project manager at Condor Travel, about the community’s transformation.

Tell us a little about the project. 

Thanks to sponsorship from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB-MIF) and the Dutch Cooperation Agency (SNV), Condor Travel has helped the Mullak’as Misminay people to develop an “experiential tourism” offering that allows visitors to learn first-hand about the community’s way of life while helping local residents become skilled providers of lodging, food and guided tours.

We have provided training in basic hospitality and cuisine techniques to participating local residents, and we are developing a program to improve agricultural and textile techniques to strengthen their capabilities so that their products can gain access to new markets. We are also investing in improving the area’s infrastructure, including organizing and optimizing signage for tourist attractions, facilitating distribution and access to drinking water and food, and financing improvements to bathrooms, kitchens, room furnishings and dining areas in houses that will receive visitors. The project also includes training programs, enhanced equipment, and better marketing for porters, artisans and farmers.

Why did Condor Travel decide to support this community initiative?

We have had a close relationship with the Mullak’as Misminay community since the 1990s, when we started to hire local men to work as porters, cooks and assistants for adventure routes like the famous Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Then we began a philanthropic support plan to help them in matters of health, education and family, which strengthened the trust between the company and the community. Finally, we got the chance to implement the inclusive business project in experiential tourism, creating new “win-win” opportunities for the business and the community.

Tell us more about the families benefiting from the project. 

The project aims to benefit 300 families by developing inclusive businesses in economic activities such as tourism, agriculture, crafts and portaging. We are working on the construction of a water storage system with the municipality, IDB-MIF and SNV, which will improve access to water for drinking and for irrigation, increasing the social and economic impact of the project.

Condor Travel’s Mullak’as Misminay project placed third in the 2013 Responsible Tourism Showcase at this year’s Educational Travel Conference.  What did that recognition mean to you?

This international recognition comes after five years of constant work on the project, so it is certainly an incentive to further improve and expand the benefits to other communities of Cuzco.

How did the community react to the award?

The community received the news very enthusiastically! The people see it as a reward for their efforts to learn and launch a new business that is opening new opportunities for their families. The recognition also included a monetary award that will be used to give some scholarships to young people in the community who are being trained in Cuzco.

How do you involve tourists in your sustainability efforts? 

Through the experiential tours, visitors learn about and experience the community’s way of life. For example, after a traditional welcome with music, they are encouraged to participate in tilling the land, using traditional farming techniques. They also learn about how local plants used as healing folk remedies and in making natural dyes, and how textiles are made by hand using ancient techniques.

This project was implemented by Condor Travel’s nonprofit association, Wings. Can you tell us more about Wings? 

Condor Travel founded Wings to promote and implement corporate social responsibility and sustainable tourism programs, and to channel aid and donations from our strategic partners who want to support low-income communities through responsible tourism.

Wings is also a platform to promote volunteerism in the communities of Cuzco, and to disseminate the challenges and benefits of inclusive businesses in national tourism networks and private sector unions.

How does Condor Travel benefit from its commitment to sustainability?

Condor Travel has created a high-quality, innovative tourism product that generates unique experiences for its customers. We’ve noticed an increase in sales for these kinds of products, which motivates us to design new programs involving communities.

In addition, with the efforts that we implement to care for the environment (such as using less paper and energy), we generate significant savings and help raise environmental awareness among our collaborators, which has repercussions on their family life.

What’s next for the Mullak’as Misminay project?

We hope to expand the project’s benefits to other sectors of the community–for example, by improving the water supply, we can strengthen agriculture. Wings is expanding its areas of work, including new communities in its corporate social responsibility program and promoting the destination to volunteers to support the development of new sustainable tourism programs in the area.

Our general goal is to continue working under the guidelines of sustainable tourism at national and international destinations, so our next step will be to involve the regional Condor Travel offices in South America in these projects.

Visit www.SustainableTrip.org to learn more about sustainable tourism operations like Condor Travel that are good for people, wildlife and the global environment.

The Women of Vietnam’s Central Highlands

Part III of a Vietnam travelogue from Dipika Chawla, our New York-based online communities coordinator.

The shade trees overhead provided welcome protection from the mid-morning sun as I joined about 100 farmers on a Robusta coffee farm in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. We were gathered for a NESCAFÉ Plan farmer training session, the first of six that will take place over the next year.

Phung Thi Huu, a lead farmer under the NESCAFÉ Better Farming Practices training program, talks to a group of 100 Vietnamese farmers about rejuvenation, grafting, pruning, harvesting and other topics relevant to the region.

Here, Phung Thi Huu — a petite, middle-aged woman who wielded her megaphone with natural confidence — easily commanded the attention of the large group of mostly male farmers as she spoke about rejuvenation, grafting, pruning, harvesting and other topics relevant to the region.  As a NESCAFÉ Plan participant and community leader, Huu had taken part in the NESCAFÉ Better Farming Practices (NBFP) training program earlier this year hosted with support from the Rainforest Alliance. She is now responsible for training and managing 90 farmers from her village, Cao Thang, in the Dak Lak province.

Afterwards, when the whole group sat down for lunch at the home of one of the farmers, Huu worked the crowd. She floated between different groups of people, joking, laughing comfortably and making sure everyone had a place to sit. At one point, I watched a farmer say something to her and saw her respond with a smile and a bashful, dismissive gesture. My interpreter learned over and said, “He was telling her what a great speaker she was today.”

Farmers listen attentively to Huu’s dynamic presentation.

After lunch, I sat down with Huu to talk about her experience as a coffee farmer. I learned that her family had once cultivated rice. Seeking a more profitable crop, they switched to coffee in 1989, and many families in the village soon followed suit.

According to Huu, who has been part of the NESCAFE Plan since 2011, the training has deepened her technical knowledge of coffee farming. For example, she now knows how to select better quality seedlings and how to determine the exact amount of fertilizer required without letting any go to waste.

Two other women farmers I spoke with during my trip, Phung Thi Ngoc Loan and Thi Huong Nguyen, identified pruning techniques as one of the most important topics covered during the training program.

Phung Thi Ngoc Loan, a farmer in Vietnam, says that through training ““we learned that if you don’t prune the coffee trees properly, there will be too many branches sucking all the nutrients from the soil, which reduces productivity later on.”

“We learned that if you don’t prune the coffee trees properly, there will be too many branches sucking all the nutrients from the soil, which reduces productivity later on,” explained Loan. “If you do prune properly, the tree will be healthier and produce more cherries.”

Loan said that the training showed her how to identify early symptoms of coffee disease and pest damage. She has also started a compost pile with readily available materials, such as coffee husks, that she can use as fertilizer — thereby allowing her to decrease her use of chemical fertilizers. She estimates that she has reduced her fertilizer expenses by 10 to 20 percent as a result of composting.

A dog stands on a coffee farm in Vietnam.

Reducing chemical use is a common theme in the program. In addition to reducing chemical fertilizers, all three farmers reported using less herbicide for weeding purposes. On her small 3.7-acre (1.5-hectare) farm, Nguyen has cut out herbicides altogether, relying solely on hand weeding. In doing so, she’s protecting her family’s health and keeping valuable insects that help to soften her soil.

The Nguyen family carries out all of the field work, except in the harvest season, when they may hire a few extra laborers.

I asked Nguyen if she had noticed any other differences in the natural environment. “There are more birds, because of the shade trees and because we’ve been using less chemicals,” she said.  “Actually, they’re very useful for catching small pests.”

A spread of dried coffee cherries.

The shade trees offer more than bird habitat. In the training, Nguyen learned how to more evenly disperse the shade trees on her farm to create a proper canopy, which protects the coffee plants, maintains humidity and limits the growth of weeds. Fruit-bearing shade trees (such as avocado, durian and lychee) provide an added bonus. “Some of the fruit we eat and the rest we can sell at the market for a bit of extra income,” said Nguyen.

For Nguyen and Loan, the transition to sustainable agriculture has been smooth.  “In general, none of the new techniques are too difficult to follow,” Loan said. “If I have a question, I can just ask my neighbors and imitate what they are doing.”

Indeed, the vast majority of the coffee farmers in the region are smallholders, and neighbors are more than willing to help each other and exchange advice. “Some of my neighbors didn’t participate in the earlier trainings,” recalled Loan. “So when I returned from the training, I taught them what I learned about grafting techniques. After seeing how beneficial it was, they decided to participate in the next session.”

Huu posed with her grandson on her coffee farm.

Huu, on the other hand, had a somewhat different perspective as a lead farmer responsible for formally passing on the information to the other farmers in her village. She identified cultural differences as an issue, since several of the farmers in Cao Thang belong to different ethnic groups. She found that the language barrier sometimes makes it difficult to communicate and the older generation can be more resistant to adopting unfamiliar modern practices. She noted, however, that the younger generation, regardless of ethnicity, is always eager to learn and picks up new techniques very quickly.

In the short time since she joined the NESCAFÉ Plan, Huu has already perceived noticeable benefits to her farm. Her yields are higher and her costs are reduced, and she is pleased with her family’s increased awareness. They have all improved their knowledge of coffee quality, sanitation, chemical safety and environmental impacts. This means a better farming business for generations to come.

All three women said they looked forward to participating in as many NESCAFÉ Plan training events as possible. “I am always trying to learn more,” said Loan. “Farmers always need to learn more.”

Read part I and II of Dipika’s Vietnam travelogue.

Celebrating International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

Around the world, some 370 million indigenous people–keepers of unique traditions, custodians of our earth’s biodiversity and representatives of the world’s incredibly diverse citizens–live in 70 countries.  In celebration of these distinctive individuals, we’re sharing a few stories about our work with indigenous communities…

Supporting Community Tourism in Ecuador

Sani Lodge is owned and fully operated by the Kichwa Sani Island community. With more than 143 square miles of forest, Sani Lodge controls and protects the largest expanse of tropical moist forest in all of Ecuador. (Photo credit: Sani Lodge)

Community lodges in Ecuador offer travelers a unique vantage point from which to experience the country’s ancient cultures and impressive biodiversity —however, not all community lodges offer the kind of service and comfort that international travelers’ demand.

To help indigenous communities improve their tourism businesses, generate additional income and become more effective environmental stewards, the Rainforest Alliance has been working with the Huaorani Ecolodge, Kapawi Ecolodge, Sani Lodge, Secoya Lodge and Napo Wildlife Center.

In 2011, the Rainforest Alliance arranged for representatives from several international tour operators to visit the lodges. In addition to considering these lodges for inclusion in their catalogues, participants offered suggestions to the lodges’ managers for improving accommodations, such as enhancing the quality of bungalows, cleaning up trails and strengthening guide training.

“We’re open to everything the wholesalers and customers suggest. That’s the key to success in tourism,” observes Jiovanni Rivadeneira, general manager of the Napo Wildlife Center, a lodge managed by the Añangu community.

Twenty-five community members also had the opportunity to participate in an internship hosted by The JW Marriott Hotel Quito, where they learned ways to improve their lodges’ kitchens, restaurants, and housekeeping and maintenance skills.

Finding the Roots of Farming Knowledge

An indigenous child in Papua New Guinea, where Noah Jackson was recently stationed. (Photo Credit: Noah Jackson)

The Rainforest Alliance’s work with farmers around the world often puts us in contact with indigenous communities committed to managing their land in a socially, environmentally and economically friendly manner. Here, Rainforest Alliance trainer and auditor Noah Jackson shares brief impressions garnered from his work with indigenous communities…

“When I think about indigenous people and my work with communities throughout Southeast Asia, it is the knowledge that most often stands out,” Jackson says. “This knowledge is shared, traded, constantly tested and passed down. It’s what will protect farmers – they are the keepers of the secrets of planting good seeds and maintaining crops of wild edibles.”

“Their knowledge is buried within stories, customs and culture. It’s something we all need — it’s fundamental — and it’s one of the many reasons we so value these indigenous people. In addition to their rich history and culture, we need their indigenous knowledge. Here, as in many places, it’s allowing them to grow food and survive in a changing world.”

Recovering from the Ravages of Hurricane Felix

Since 2005, the Rainforest Alliance has been helping communities in Nicaragua’s North Atlantic region to manage their forests sustainably. In the wake of Hurricane Felix—which struck in 2007 and resulted in major ecological damage—we began working to build local businesses and encourage economic recovery in the region. Five years later, 30 communities comprised of more than 2,000 people have benefitted from this work. In addition, seven new forestry cooperatives have been established with smart management plans and alliances with domestic wood product companies.

Yamaba Cooperative Board Member Chavela Maklin (top right) and members of the Women’s Association of Awas Tingni. (Photo Credit: Sani Lodge)

A key aspect of working in the post-hurricane area: salvaging fallen or damaged timber while promoting the natural regeneration of the forest.  Salvage operations are producing saleable commercial wood that provides immediate income for indigenous families while also forestalling the risk of permanent forest loss from fire, pests and conversion to other land uses.

The Rainforest Alliance has also trained the Awas Tigni community in value-added processing, and helped to facilitate the acquisition of small-scale carpentry equipment and a portable sawmill.  Now, community members are employed in their own villages, producing pre-sawn boards made of mahogany and other high-demand hardwood species that command higher prices.

With the Rainforest Alliance’s support, Awas Tingni has also developed alliances with buyers and brokers of wood products, including Maderas Preciosas Indígenas e Industriales de Nicaragua S.A., a Nicaraguan wood buyer focused on domestic furniture markets and committed to sustainability.

Learn more about the Rainforest Alliance’s work with indigenous farmers, community tourism businesses, and indigenous people impacted by Hurricane Felix.

A Better Brazil Nut

Thousands of people in Peru’s Madre de Dios region earn their living by gathering and selling Brazil nuts, which grow wild in the Amazon rainforest. With support from the United States Agency for International Development and Fondation Ensemble, the Rainforest Alliance has helped hundreds of them to improve their forest stewardship, working conditions and incomes. By working with the Brazil-nut gatherers’ associations in eastern Peru, the Rainforest Alliance has strengthened the conservation of their forest concessions while raising their members’ standard of living.

The 10,000 Year-Old Roots of the Wahgi Valley

Noah Jackson weighs in on what it means to be “indigenous” and why indigenous knowledge is so important.

We should be clear: by indigenous, we do not mean primitive. Although some of the Papua New Guinea villages I’m staying in do not have power or electricity, farmers can still check coffee prices with their cellphones.  Others have rigged up small solar panels to illuminate their homes at night.

An indigenous child in Papua New Guinea, where Noah Jackson is currently stationed.

Indigenous literally means native. And because some of the groups I visit are very isolated, there is a strong sense of roots, culture and place.  There are also a number of challenges.

When I stay in these small villages –  exploring, socializing, cooking meals with farmers, community development officers and extension officers — I’m engaged in conversations about climate change, soil quality and other issues that affect the coffee and the land.

While some nearby farmers are migrants to the area, and others are just first or second generation farmers, there is a sense of indigenous knowledge on many farms I’ve visited.  I write from a small plantation, set in the Wahgi Valley, where there are 12 clans. Each clan speaks its own unique language, in addition to Pidgin and some English.

Taro growing in the Wahgi Valley.

Taro was first cultivated in these swampy soils more than 10,000 years ago. Three thousand years later, bananas (native to the region) were cultivated. There is evidence that this is one of the original global centers of agriculture; the people of the Wahgi Valley do not seem to have been passive recipients of domesticated agriculture. How do we know? Proof of the domestication of these staple foods wasn’t found elsewhere in Asia for another 3,000 years.

As I explore the area’s forested farms, some of the farmers’ children point out the features they know I’ll be interested in: drainage systems that allow water flow and mounds where water tolerant plants such as maize, sugarcane and yam grow. Coffee, as I’ve explained in a previous post, is a relatively new crop here. Many of the farmers in the area are just second generation coffee farmers.

Nonetheless, there is a strong history of indigenous knowledge to draw from. Forest fruits are collected and tended to in small nurseries in a way that closely mirrors the development and maintenance of coffee nurseries. Children who play in the coffee gardens and help their parents benefit from firsthand lessons and transfers of knowledge.

In the Wahgi Valley, children learn the art of farming from their parents.

Among indigenous farmers, there is much in the way of direct knowledge exchange.  These farms are classrooms. It’s one of the reasons that I like this work so much; I get to ask questions from farmers who have roots in the origins of a 10,000 year-old knowledge system.

This area is not without problems. Some indigenous people don’t have electricity, running water or even water storage tanks.  Some of the roads are quite poor, too. The road leading from the farm to market — where coffee, pandanus fruits, betel nuts and taro can be sold and purchased — is sometimes no more than a forest trail.  These crops, carried in sacks, are sometimes transported on foot for hours.

Naturally, there is temptation to earn income in other ways. The gas and oil industries are major employers in Papua New Guinea. This is having a transformative affect on the valley’s indigenous people and on surrounding communities.

Still, my outlook for the preservation of the local culture and their farming livelihoods is relatively positive.

It’s impossible to ignore the fact that the economy transforming. Some flows of capital have driven up prices. I’ve met many families that have been split up because some members have left to work in oil and gas. The landscape is changing.

When I think about indigenous people and my work with communities throughout Southeast Asia, it is the knowledge that most often stands out. This knowledge is shared, traded, constantly tested and passed down. It’s what will protect farmers – they are the keepers of the secrets of planting good seeds and maintaining crops of wild edibles.

A local and his two children make their way out of the forests of the Wahgi Valley.

Their knowledge is buried within stories, customs and culture. It’s something we all need — it’s fundamental — and it’s one of the many reasons we so value these indigenous people. In addition to their rich history and culture, we need their indigenous knowledge. Here, as in many places, it’s allowing them to grow food and survive in a changing world.

Indigenous Communities Revive a Lost Tradition

We’re returning to Ecuador for part three of our week-long blog series celebrating the UN’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous People.  Today, Yessenia Soto, the Rainforest Alliance’s communications associate in Ecuador, leads us down one of the country’s oldest trails…

Some say that South America’s first tourists were the travelers who hiked the Inca Trail some 500 years ago. That pre-Columbian highway, built during the 15th century to connect the distant regions of the Inca Empire, once stretched from what is now Ecuador to Patagonia in Argentina. Scattered along that cobbled route were way stations called tambos where travelers could find food and lodging.

The gorgeous landscape of Chimborazo.

The Inca Trail may no longer be a major transportation route, but thanks to the natural and cultural treasures that line what remains of the trail, it continues to draw thousands of tourists every year. One group of 12 indigenous communities in the Andean province of Chimborazo is working to capitalize on the route’s appeal and develop the region’s tourism potential.

“Ten years ago, private companies and big tour operators would arrive here with their tourists and offer us to them like postcards,” explains Anibal Tenemasa, president of the Chimborazo Community and Tourism Development Corporation (CORDTUCH, for its name in Spanish). “They wanted to see our homes, take photos and give us a few coins — as if we were beggars — while they charged for the tours.”

A lodge in Chimborazo.

In 1998, growing tired of the exploitation of their culture and natural riches, local communities founded the organization that eventually became CORDTUCH, and began offering those services themselves. Though the group originally lacked a business plan, it was committed to collaboration and to making a real difference on economic, social, cultural and environmental fronts. Those good intentions made the group a model of community tourism, propelling them toward success.

“We never thought about hotels or luxury tourism, notes Miguel Ángel Guamán, a member of CORDTUCH’s administration. “Our proposal was, and continues to be, to offer tourists the opportunity to enjoy an authentic experience surrounded by the peace and beauty of nature.”

A group of tourists horseback ride in Chimborazo.

Travelers who visit these communities enjoy an unforgettable journey through ancestral lands on the lower slopes of snow-capped Chimborazo Volcano — Ecuador’s highest peak, towering 20,702 feet (6,310 meters) above sea level. The breathtaking landscape is dotted with indigenous villages where the colorful traditional dress and houses complement the surrounding natural beauty. Visitors can combine horseback riding or hiking with traditional food and handicrafts. They can also take comfort in the fact that their patronage is directly supporting the local community. [After years of hard work, the communities earned legal recognition by the Ecuadorian government and today everything in the area -- including restaurants, lodging and tours -- is owned and operated by local indigenous families.]

Alpacas in Chimborazo.

As the communities have built up their tourism businesses, they’ve looked to the Rainforest Alliance for guidance on issues like garbage and sewage disposal, safe drinking water, and proper heating. They’ve also benefitted from Rainforest Alliance-led workshops on the principles of sustainability and learned techniques for more sustainable environmental, operational and business management. In a matter of months, community members learned how to improve food handling, build biofilters to treat water, separate rubbish and practice first aid. They also developed plans for adopting alternative technologies to treat waste water and solid waste, identified environmentally-appropriate energy alternatives and investigated more efficient methods for heating their lodges and restaurants. In addition, an infrastructure study and analysis of interior design options showed the communities how to invest in infrastructure improvements that are appropriate for the cultural and environmental context.

These developments won’t go unnoticed by travelers or the tourism industry. We’re working to generate tourism in the region with a promotional video, a revamp of CORDTUCH’s website, and the addition of Chimborazo establishments to the Rainforest Alliance’s online resource for eco-conscious travelers, SustainableTrip.org.

Both Tenemasa and Guamán agree that CORDTUCH’s members are enthusiastic about their work with the Rainforest Alliance, and confident that tourists want responsible tourism options. The rest of the community is also happy, they add, because the partnership has generated more economic opportunities.

The communities plan to sell handicrafts and Andean grains and jams to tourists – industries with enormous potential for growth, since the workers and tools for production and processing are already established.  To take advantage of that potential, CORDTUCH is creating a “commercialization unit,” which will help the communities to standardize, organize and work together to gain access to major markets.

Weaving in Chimborazo.

To date, more than 1,600 people have benefitted from CORDTUCH’s work. “We want to continue to reach out to other communities in order to benefit more families,” says Tenemasa. There are many communities along the Inca trail that would be happy to revive the tourism that began there centuries ago, and to develop it in a way that will allow them to pass a lucrative and sustainable business on to future generations.

Do you want to continue your exploration of Chimborazo and meet a few members of the community? Watch a short video.

The Rainforest Alliance’s work in the region is funded by the United States Agency for International Development.

In Ecuador, Community Tourism Gets the Support it Deserves

In part two of this week’s blog series highlighting the Rainforest Alliance’s work with indigenous communities around the globe — a recognition of the UN’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous People — we’re putting the spotlight on a project with a group of tourism businesses in Ecuador. David Dudenhoefer writes…

Community lodges in Ecuador offer travelers a unique vantage point from which to experience the country’s ancient cultures and impressive biodiversity. However, not all community lodges offer the kind of service and comfort that international travelers demand. To help indigenous communities improve their tourism businesses, generate additional income and become more effective environmental stewards, the Rainforest Alliance has been working with the Huaorani Ecolodge, Kapawi Ecolodge, Sani Lodge, Secoya Lodge and Napo Wildlife Center.

Sani Lodge is owned and fully operated by the Kichwa Sani Island community. With more than 143 square miles of forest, Sani Lodge controls and protects the largest expanse of tropical moist forest in all of Ecuador. (Photo credit: Sani Lodge)

In February, the Rainforest Alliance arranged for representatives from several international tour operators – including Life Adventure, Country Walkers, Detour, Holbrook Travel and Journey Latin America – to visit the lodges. In addition to considering these lodges for inclusion in their catalogues, participants offered suggestions to the lodges’ managers for improving accommodations.

“We’re open to everything the wholesalers and customers suggest. That’s the key to success in tourism,” observes Jiovanni Rivadeneira, general manager of the Napo Wildlife Center, a lodge managed by the Añangu community. Suggestions included enhancing the quality of bungalows and accommodations, cleaning up trails and improving guide training.

The Napo Wildlife Center houses an incredible variety of well-conserved plants and animals thanks to the commitment of the Kichwa community of Añangu to ban hunting and fishing in its territory. (Photo credit: Napo Wildlife Center)

Twenty-five community members employed by the lodges also had the opportunity to participate in an internship hosted by The JW Marriott Hotel Quito, where they learned ways to improve their kitchens, restaurants, and housekeeping and maintenance skills.

“We hope that these relationships and experiences will help community lodges to bring the quality of their services and facilities in line with their natural and cultural resources,” explains Veronica Muñoz, manager of the Rainforest Alliance’s sustainable tourism program in Ecuador. “We believe that this initiative can help lodges to increase their revenues, improve their communities and conserve their cultures and biodiversity.”

For more information on responsible travel options, visit www.sustainabletrip.org.

In the Wake of a Hurricane: Indigenous Communities in Nicaragua on the Road to Recovery

Lara Koritzke — former associate director of development for the Rainforest Alliance and current director of development and communications at ISEAL Alliance — writes about the Rainforest Alliance’s work with a group of indigenous communities in Nicaragua. Devastated by a 2007 hurricane, they are recovering from damage to their homes, crops and natural forests with perseverance, hard work and collaboration.

Awas Tingni children play atop the sawn boards of timber that will be sold into local furniture markets and provide increased income to pay for school improvements and teacher salaries.

On September 4, 2007, Hurricane Felix struck Nicaragua’s North Atlantic Autonomous Region (RAAN, for its name in Spanish) and left major ecological and socioeconomic damage in its wake.  More than 25,000 impoverished families – mostly from the Moskito and Mayagna indigenous communities – were affected. Estimated damages to homes, crops and natural forests surpassed USD $1.3 billion and more than 3.7 million acres of biodiverse tropical forests were impacted.

Since 2005, the Rainforest Alliance has been helping communities in the region to manage their forests sustainably. In the wake of the hurricane, we also began working to build local businesses and encourage economic recovery. Four years later, 30 communities comprised of more than 2,000 people have benefitted from this work. In addition, seven new forestry cooperatives have been established with smart management plans and alliances with domestic wood product companies. A few highlights of this work…

Salvaging Post-Hurricane Wood and Fostering Natural Forest Re-Growth

A key aspect of working in the post-hurricane area: salvaging fallen or damaged timber while promoting the natural regeneration of the forest.  Salvage operations are producing saleable commercial wood that provides immediate income for indigenous families while also forestalling the risk of permanent forest loss from fire, pests and conversion to other land uses.  These risks will persist unless communities have an alternative revenue stream over the long-term and a real incentive to maintain forests in the face of growing pressures to convert them for livestock and agricultural operations.

Mahogany and other boards sustainably salvaged from Awas Tingni forestland await pickup from North American Wood Products, a broker providing timber for Gibson guitars in the United States.

The Awas Tingni Community: Conservation and Poverty Alleviation in Action

The Rainforest Alliance has been working closely with the Awas Tingni indigenous community to improve the livelihoods of its nearly 300 affected families (about 1,800 people) through the creation of a forest management plan for low-impact salvage harvesting operations.  Such salvage operations reduce greenhouse gas emissions by ensuring that downed wood does not rot or burn. The Rainforest Alliance has also trained the community in value-added processing, and helped to facilitate the acquisition of small-scale carpentry equipment and a portable sawmill.  Now, community members are employed in their own villages, producing pre-sawn boards made of mahogany and other high-demand hardwood species that command higher prices than raw logs alone.

Market Linkages with Wood Buyers Focused on Sustainability

With the Rainforest Alliance’s support, Awas Tingni has also developed alliances with buyers and brokers of wood products, including Nashville-based Gibson Musical Instruments and Maderas Preciosas Indígenas e Industriales de Nicaragua S.A. (MAPIINICSA), a Nicaraguan wood buyer focused on domestic furniture markets.  Both companies are committed to purchasing sustainably harvested timber for their products.

The Rainforest Alliance has also helped the Awas Tingni community to create a new enterprise for their wood harvesting operations: the community-owned Yamaba forestry cooperative, now governed by a board made up of elected community members.

Job Creation and Other Benefits for Women and Children

The Yamaba cooperative and its salvage operations are also creating new jobs in the community. In 2010, the cooperative employed just 60 people; by 2011, that number had reached nearly 200, including 36 female employees. Sales of timber from the cooperative reached US $98,000 in 2010, and are projected to top US $400,000 by the close of the year. In addition to helping to develop the cooperative and increase incomes, the Rainforest Alliance is working with the group to ensure the effective and responsible allocation of newly generated funds.

Yamaba Cooperative Board Member Chavela Maklin (top right) and members of the Women’s Association of Awas Tingni.

Presently, the cooperative’s board of directors and its (newly created) Women’s Association are carefully considering the potential uses of the increased income. They include: re-investing in timber operations to increase sustainability; creating a fenced boundary to protect traditional lands from illegal loggers and poachers; providing additional support for the community school and its teachers; providing materials for the Women’s Association to create small artisan products for sale in local markets; and purchasing a community vehicle that can bring sick or pregnant community members to Puerto Cabezas  —  Awas Tingni is a 3-hour walk to the nearest bus stop, and Puerto Cabezas, the nearest town, is only accessible by bus.