Ecotourism and Climate Change in Latin America

Translated by Lucie Bardos

Both of the ST’s are popular media articles that can be found online. ST1 is from AFP (Agence France Presse) and can be found through Google News, and ST2 is from a Latin American news website, which deals primarily with the issues surrounding nature conservation and sustainability, called “Ecoportal” (www.ecoportal.net). ST1 talks about a small-scale ecotourism business, in the effort to gain economic self-sustainability, initiated by a group of Ecuadorian indigenous people after successful land reclamation from a previous hacienda owner. ST2, on the other hand, talks about some of the main issues that Latin America as a whole will be faced with in the coming years as a result of climate change, and the role that governments should have in managing the risks associated with climate change.

Indigenous People in Ecuador Discover Ecotourism as a Last Hope
By Alexander Martínez (APF) – 18/02/2010

Source text: “Indígenas ecuatorianos hallan en el ecoturismo su tabla de salvación”

PIÑAN, ECUADOR – A marvel of nature in the Andes has become the last hope for an Ecuadorian indigenous community that, after many years, has succeeded in obtaining a chunk of the roughly 27,000-hectare piece of land belonging to an old hacienda owner. Now, the indigenous community is putting its money on adventure tourism.

Colossal mountains of green and ochre that seem to have been outlined by a paintbrush, rivers, lakes, vultures, and foxes all make up the Piñan landscape. Piñan is a village at 3,170 meters above sea level, which 180 Caraqui indigenous people (who long ago faced the Incan Empire in battle) now call home.

Piñan is located in the Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve, one of the biggest and most ecologically diverse reserves in Ecuador. It also makes up part of a 27,000-hectare hacienda that belonged to a Spanish lord in the colonial period, which now belongs to a non-indigenous family-owned agriculture business.

Even though Piñan is 54 kilometers away from Ibarra, the nearest urban centre, the trip from Piñan to Ibarra takes 4 hours by car due to bad road conditions. The journey, nevertheless, offers a trip back in time through postcard scenes, such as those of the Pucares – perfect concentric rings that served as indigenous fortresses on mountaintops.

“This community has been historically forced into subservience. It’s a prototype of Ecuadorian haciendas, in which the indigenous people were kept captive and were transferred from owner to owner with the property,” says Iván Suárez, Public Relations officer of the indigenous collective and member of the Cordillera NGO, which supports the community tourism project.

The idea began to take shape 10 years ago after a rebellion by the indigenous people, who had become tired of working for the landowner. They began a process of reclaiming the land, alleging that there had been violations of both their ancestral rights and their labor rights.

“They were prohibited from passing through the door to the hacienda; there were threats, assaults. On top of neglect, they had to endure the fact that the owner, who wanted them outside, humiliated them”, remembers Suarez, who also claims that the owner only paid 400 USD a year in property tax.

The request made by the indigenous people ended with the landowner conceding 1,200 hectares of land where the high altitude grassland plains kiss the clouds. After the settlement, the indigenous group created a company that would offer guides, as well as carriage rides and trail rides on horseback.

However, the plan fell short for an indigenous community that cultivates crops for subsistence, and that can barely sell one broad bean harvest a year for the set price, according to Rigoberto Rodríguez (known as ‘Don Rigo’), one of the denizens of Piñan.

From this need arose the proposal for the construction of a mountain refuge for adventure-seekers. The European Union (EU) contributed 60,000 USD and the indigenous group pledged 30 “mingas” (communal working days) for the construction of a lodge capable of accommodating 20 people, between last July and December.

“We are very proud. We never imagined having something like this”, affirms Rodríguez, a 55 year-old guide overflowing with youthful energy as he accompanies the horseback rides on foot. For the purpose of being able to offer these rides, each indigenous family contributed one horse.

The lodge, whose comforts contrast with the humble indigenous communal huts, had its official opening last weekend, just in time for the annual Huairasinchi Adventure Competition (a race which forms part of the Adventure Racing World Series). The contestants of the race were due to pass through the town of Piñan, which also happens to boast views of several volcanoes, one of which is Mt. Cotacachi (4,937 meters above sea level).

A head administrator supervises the earnings made by the lodge and its services, and a percentage of these goes into a savings account. Other types of earning, such as tips, are distributed amongst the workers, and thanks to a store that supplies the town, the earnings made in Piñan stay in Piñan.

The refuge is “the first stage in the construction of the most important trekking route in all of northern Ecuador, because it covers the Intag River, the high altitude grasslands of Piñan, and the thermal pools of Chachimbiro,” explains Suárez.

The Chachimbiro Project, which has been in place for the past 15 years, involves the participation of nine communities that include people of African descent, Indigenous groups, and farming communities. In 2009, they reported sales revenues of 1.1 million USD.

Suárez remarks that if Piñan is to obtain such success, it is necessary that, first of all, the government pass a law that obligates it to buy up private land within the nation’s natural reserves in order to safeguard the conservation of these lands.

“We have been here since this world was born, therefore this belongs to us. Our parents told us to stay here and we will do the same with our own children,” promises ‘Don Rigo’.

Climate Change Will Wreak Havoc in Latin America
20/09/09

Source text: “El cambio climático causará estragos en Latinoamérica”

The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) announced yesterday that due to climate change, Latin America will be faced with growing deforestation and lack of water. These factors will complicate food security in a region where 53 million people suffer from hunger.

According to official government calculations, about 70 thousand hectares of forest have already disappeared from the subcontinent since 1990. They greatest decreases in forest cover have occurred in Brazil, Mexico, Honduras, Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Venezuela.

At the same time, the total amount of agricultural land with access to irrigation has remained virtually unchanged. However, there has been a decrease in areas where cereals are grown, due to droughts that have affected Argentina, Uruguay, and Central America throughout the past few years.

“Governments will have to take action to prevent, adapt to, and mitigate the effects of climate change”, commented head official of the Latin American office of the FAO, Jan Van Wambeke.

On the other hand, there will be a direct threat to the capacity of production in the food and agricultural sector in the region, which currently generates 120 million USD in exports, due in large part to the contributions of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico, and Uruguay.

The situation will complicate the availability of key nutrients in cities, and, since around 60 million farmers will have their livelihoods negatively affected, there is the threat of new migrations of farmers to cities.

“It is probable that deforestation, soil degradation, and lack of water will result in concentrated land ownership, given that many farmers will be unable to adapt to the new conditions”, added Wambeke.

He also recalled that this process will be reinforced by the southward expansion of Latin American deserts, as predicted by various studies. In Chile, however, government officials predict that around 2050, the desert will actually shift by 500 km.

Taking these factors into account, the main worry of the governments should be “implementing a system to manage the agroclimatic risk”, said Wambeke.

With this in mind, he showed appreciation for the efforts put forth by Costa Rica, Brazil, Mexico, and Chile in confronting the effects of climate change on agricultural production and the environment.

Nevertheless, in the name of the FAO, Wambeke added that “the equation is a very complicated one, since we have to fight the effects of climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, and problems associated with food security.”

The Challenge Concerning Hunger

César Falconi, head of the Latin American and Caribbean branch of the Investment Centre of the FAO, confirmed that there are currently a billion people suffering from hunger, and that in 2050, the challenge will be to feed 9 billion of them.

At a press conference, Falconi announced some of the conclusions reached at a conference entitled “the Environment and Sustainable Development: Dialogues on Theory and Practice”, which took place at the Menendez Pelayo International University (UIMP) in Santander, Spain. Even though studies suggest that the world has the resources and the technological potential to face this challenge, “increasing investment in sustainable development is of utmost importance”, confirms Falconi.

Source website: www.ecoportal.net.

For more information go to www.pnuma.org (United Nations Environment Program)