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MINIMIZING IMPACT: PRESERVING CULTURE WHILE FORWARDING
CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT GOALS THROUGH ECOTOURISM
By
DAN SCHWARTZ
A RESEARCH PAPER PRESENTED TO THE DEPARTMENT
OF HUMAN BIOLOGY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR COMPLETION OF
SOPHOMORE COLLEGE
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
OCT. 2010
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I. Abstract
In the problem of monetizing the rainforest in order to ensure its survival, ecotourism
may be the answer. It seems to hit both bottom-lines; the endeavor is financially viable and holds
conservation potential. Yet there is a third bottom-line in need of consideration: cultural
preservation. Even if ecotourism can financially support rainforest protection, no one can deem it
a success if cultures are overrun by the operations. My paper seeks to explore this question; what
is the impact of ecotourism on indigenous cultures? By analyzing both subjective and objective
data, and by interviewing members on both sides of the issue I hope to reveal the true cultural
costs of eco-lodges in indigenous communities. I will contrast lodges in Belize and Peru,
critically analyzing the projects. Comparing and contrasting these sites, I will propose that by
leading collaboratively and aiding social equality ecotourism can succeed while minimizing
impact on indigenous culture.
II. Introduction
In discussions of human development and conservation goals, the emphasis has recently
turned to sustainability. The priorities seem to be economic sustainability, followed by
conservation sustainability, and finally social sustainability. If an initiative doesn’t seem
economically viable, no organization will attempt it. Ecotourism has been frequently touted as
the solution to the “save the rainforest” problem that has plagued past generations. This
integrated conservation and development project (ICDP) shows both preservation and economic
promise, allowing large tracts of land to remain relatively untouched through a financially viable
operation. But will this potentially final frontier for conservationists also maintain existing
cultures, or will it pave the way for a pristine westernized idealistic manifestation of nature? In
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this paper, I will focus on two attempts at ecotourism in two very different locations, comparing
and contrasting their impact on the local culture, in the hopes of gleaning the keys to maintaining
a successful business endeavor while minimizing impact on the indigenous traditions.
III. Hypothesis
My original hypothesis was that, despite honest economic and conservation aims,
ecotourism homogenizes culture. As I looked at more sites, I began to notice that there wasn’t
one pattern of homogenization; instead, it became clear that each site was geographically,
culturally, and organizationally different. In some sites, ecotourism had a much bigger impact on
culture than in others. My original hypothesis was naïve, and I developed a new hypothesis that
allowed for differences in different ecotourism ventures. This hypothesis aimed to identify the
factors differentiating positive ecotourism impacts from negative. Synthesizing the common
threads from different cases, I found two criteria for successful ecotourism projects. My
hypothesis, which I hope to illustrate through two challenging examples, reflects these concepts:
ecotourism can avoid homogenizing culture by leading collaboratively and aiding social equality.
Leading collaboratively means sharing fiscal output and management with the local group, and
social equality refers to making an extra effort to support cultural practices, even when it mat not
be immediately economically advantageous.
IV. Findings
In my attempts to falsify my hypothesis, I chose two particularly unique examples that
challenged my predictions from different angles. In Gales Point Manatee, Belize, the project was
culturally disastrous; I attempted to tease out what went wrong, while salvaging the positive
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efforts of the community. At Posada Amazonas, Peru, the project was (and continues to be) one
of the most successful ventures between a for-profit ecotourism company and an indigenous
group; here, I tried to identify what went right, while critically analyzing the unavoidable
impacts on the local group. With these orthogonal case studies, I attempted to boil down to the
core of culturally respectful, fiscally successful ecotourism.
Gales Point Manatee, Belize
According to Jill Belsky’s paper
Misrepresenting Communities: The Politics of
Community-Based Rural Ecotourism in Gales Point
Manatee, Belize, the seeds for ecotourism in Gales
Point were planted in early 1991, when 170,000
acres of Belize (including Gales Point) were deemed
a biosphere reserve. The eye of this area was the
“Manatee Special Development Area;” a sectioned-
off space particularly structured for the preservation
of manatees in the area. A goal of the project, along
with preserving the wildlife, was explicitly “local
empowerment building and keep[ing] the cultural
unity and integrity of the village intact” (Belsky: 650-1).
On paper the project looked great. The economic results initially looked promising;
according to Richard Horwich, the leader of the Manatee Advisory Team (MAT) which headed
the project, “some US$30,000-$40,000 per year had been brought into the area by 3,000 foreign
The village of Gales Point Manatee (Belsky:
649).
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tourists.” In addition, preliminary reports showed that the projects had been “relatively
inexpensive both to initiate and to maintain in the early stages” (Horwich & Lyon: 355). Parallel
to the financial reports of success were positive cultural signs; qualitative reports indicated that
the population in Gales Point had increased pride in their area and identified more with the
conservation efforts (Horwich & Lyon: 358).
The project may have showed promise on paper, but signs of danger were present early
on. The MAT was made up of a United States Peace Corps volunteers, a Fullbright scholar, a
United States Forest Service biologist, and Horwich, an American biologist (Fritsch &
Johannsen: 127). According to Belsky, “no attention was directed at developing an historical
understanding of cultural and environmental
change in Gales Point or determining how
property rights and other local social
institutions had been organized, managed, or
disrupted over time” (Belsky: 651). MAT
made attempts to form a representative group
of individuals from the community with
whom they could work, but Belsky’s study
reveals that MAT was unaware of underlying tensions within the village, and instead ended up
with a polarized group. This lack of communication with the greater indigenous population
sowed the seeds for future difficulties.
A bed and breakfast at Gales Point Manatee (Courtesy
of Greg Denvers).
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The financial and leadership issues created a dichotomy in the community of those hired
and those out of work. One main problem was inherent inequality in earnings. There were certain
barriers to entry that blocked many
indigenous people from working at
Gales Point Manatee. Belsky cites that
a boat, fuel, and life jackets were
required as part of the setup costs for
hire (Belsky: 652). This worked to
increase the wealth gap within the
community, rather than providing a
new chance for the lower earners to
bring in more money. A second issue brought on by the lack of communication was financial
dependence. According to Belsky, about 28% of the indigenous community listed ecotourism as
one of their top two sources of income, showing that a highly significant chunk of the population
was affected (Belsky: 652). Because of the high costs of entry, many community members took
out loans in order to fund their endeavors. In 1995, the MAT pulled out of the program with little
warning, leading to a substantial 25% drop-off in customers due to weaker advertising. This drop
was the perfect chance to see how fluctuations in the tourism market could adversely affect the
indigenous group. The results were startling; the families fell further into a cycle of debt. In one
interview, an employee explained, “I have to get [husband and son] to hunt gibnut to sell in
Belize City to raise the loan money” (Belsky: 654). Increasing non-tourism work in order to fund
tourism work was an ironic consequence of the project. In 1997, a $40,000 grant from the World
Bank only exacerbated the issue. The money was given with the explicit purpose of funding
A boat used by an indigenous employee at Gales Point Manatee
(Courtesy of Greg Denvers).
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“beautification” projects in the area, paying residents to clean their own yards and build a
community latrine rather than bailing out the struggling workers. The grant had an effect
opposite to its intention; it engendered frustration in the offended citizens of Gales Point, driving
one man to act in direct defiance by throwing his garbage on the beach (Belsky: 657). The grant
showed a clear lack of understanding of the situation by outsiders; it backfired because of this.
Naïve efforts by MAT and the World Bank led to the decline of Gales Point Manatee,
creating a rift within the indigenous group and bringing on frustration towards the global north.
Most of all, the divisive nature of the project caused a major cultural break in the community,
which remains separated ever since (Belsky: 658). A more holistic, well-informed perspective
may have given MAT and others the insight necessary to create a project that appropriately gave
the community members beneficial opportunities.
Posada Amazonas, Peru
The Posada Amazonas lodge in Peru is
one of the highest-profile experiments in
collaborative ecotourism. Located in Madre
De Dios, Peru, the lodge is the result of an
even-handed project run jointly by a for-profit
company and a local indigenous group. The
area is especially significant ecologically; Russell Mittermeier, the President of Conservation
International, calls Manu National Park (which contains the Madre de Dios region) one of the
“biologically richest protected area complexes on Earth” (MacQuarrie: 19). Posada Amazonas is
located in the southeastern portion of Peru, along the Tambopata River.
The Madre de Dios region, with the community of
Infierno (CNI) highlighted (Stronza: 31).
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Established in 1996, the lodge is a joint venture between Rainforest Expeditions (RFE), a
for-profit tourism company, and the local indigenous group, the Comunidad Nativo de Infierno
(CNI). The lodge is a larger than Gales Point Manatee,
accommodating 60 guests in comparison with the maximum
occupancy of 25 in Belize. The uniqueness of the lodge lies in its
ownership details; management of the venture is split 50-50
between RFE and representatives of CNI (the “Control
Committee”), while the earnings are 40% RFE and 60% CNI. Each
of these clauses plays an important role in the ensuring that CNI
plays an important role both managerially and economically, and
distinguishes Posada Amazonas from most other
ecotourism lodges. In particular, this split contrasts
starkly with that setup at Gales Point Manatee, where
most profits left the hands of the locals and the
leadership was disproportionately in the hands of the
external advisory team.
The economic impact of Posada Amazonas on the local community became immediately
clear. In 1999, just a few years after the lodge was established, the average employee earned
about $60/mo. exclusively from tourism, while earning about $230/mo. in total income (Stronza:
110). Thus, in the early years of the venture, tourism made up about a quarter of the average
employee’s income. Trends suggest that tourism as a percentage of total income has greatly
An areal shot of the
Tambopata River (Dan
Schwartz, 2010).
Posada Amazonas attempts to keep a low
profile in the rainforest (Dan Schwartz, 2010)
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increased since then, as projected growth of tourism in South and Central America is higher in
Peru than any other nation. Another chart demonstrates the
rapidly increased impact of tourism; between the second and
third years of the project, tourism increased from 10% to
15% of total income for the average household in CNI.
Interestingly, Brazil nuts decreased from 9% to 3% over this
time period, a drop that could suggest that former Brazil nut
harvesters were now working for Posada Amazonas
(Stronza: 111-2). Any way the numbers are sliced, it
is clear that the presence of the venture between CNI
and RFE has had a significant impact on the
economic
flow for the indigenous community. This leads us to
our next question: what was the impact?
The experience employees had with Posada
Amazonas clearly brought some benefits, according to a study by Texas A&M researcher
Amanda Stronza and Peruvian colleague Javier
Gordillo. Of 136 interviewees, 73% indicated
“economic benefits” as a main impact of ecotourism
on their lives, while 33% chose “learning
opportunities” as one of the top consequences of
their time at Posada Amazonas (Stronza &
Main sources of income across households in
CNI (Stronza: 111-2).
A black cormorant flies over Tres Chimbadas
Oxebow Lake, a biological attraction near Posada
Amazonas (Dan Schwartz, 2010).
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Gordillo: 457). In addition, a study by Stanford researcher Laura Driscoll found that there was no
significant homogenizing effect of Posada
Amazonas on the culture of the residents of
the CNI. Through a series of quantitative
behavioral studies, Driscoll reported that the
impact of tourism on the CNI affected only
their perception of tourism-related issues and
did not detract on a general scale from their
culture (Driscoll: 74). This study primarily focused on changes in community perceptions of
their own and the outside worlds through inquiries into family budget, values, and preferences.
These results revealed the benefits of the CNI interaction with Posada Amazonas.
There was a darker side to the interaction as well; further qualitative studies revealed the
costs of the collaboration on indigenous lifestyles and social
structure. In the Stronza & Gordillo study, 38% identified
“leaving family” as the most significant cost to working at
Posada Amazonas. In addition, the study revealed social
issues as a result of wage discrepancy between community
members; one worker remarked: “Because they
[employees] work at the lodge, people believe they are
richer, and so they get charged more for things…the
unequal treatment is leading to feelings of resentment and
relative lack of cohesion.” Some workers at Posada
Decorations at Posada Amazonas
incorporate indigenous culture into
the lodge (Dan Schwartz, 2010).
Rooms at Posada Amazonas each have a wall
facing the incredible vegetation of the rainforest
(Dan Schwartz, 2010).
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Amazonas attempted to “buy out” their communal obligations, further complicating the issue
(Stronza & Gordillo: 459). Finally, there are basic physiological reactions to the new life tourism
brings; multiple employees have reported they have trouble digesting food from home after
eating meals in the lodge. Although the issue of food consumption is not as important as others,
it is a strong symbol of how simply leaving the familiar context of the community can be enough
to cause loss or alteration of tradition. Even though Posada Amazonas has put leadership and
revenue in the hands of CNI, there are still significant dangers in the joint venture.
V. Conclusions
Each case study boiled down to a core group of issues. For Gales Point Manatee, most
problems lay in a lack of effective communication between the indigenous group and the MAT.
First, the MAT was entirely foreign. In addition to the lack of geographic diversity, the group
had not a single team member who specialized in sociology or anthropology. On top of it all, the
team ran the project almost entirely unilaterally, so their limited viewpoints were never
challenged. The case of Gales Point Manatee highlights the importance of leading
collaboratively, or working with the community to better understand their needs rather than
attempting to implement a project on faulty assumptions about culture and values. Had the team
had more of a holistic perspective they might not have encouraged residents to take out loans,
applied for the World Bank loan the MAT received, or allowed the largest concentration of
employees to be within a village minority. All of these factors led to an unsuccessful project that
had massive and possibly irreversible impact on the local culture. Creating a stable and fair
system of managerial involvement with the community could have leaded to an ecotourism
experience that did not squash culture on its way to preservation and economizing.
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Although Posada Amazonas demonstrates the positive influence of leading
collaboratively, the Peruvian lodge serves as a reminder that even the most circumspect lodges
have a significant cultural footprint on the surrounding community. The incorporation of RFE
with the CNI Control Board was a crucial step, and dividing profits and leadership decision-
making more evenly led to a markedly more collaborative, positive experience. In contrast with
the frustration and disillusionment visible in the Gales Point community, CNI residents report a
feeling of empowerment and ownership with respect to the project. Posada Amazonas has had
limited impact on the indigenous groups because it is a multilateral effort.
Despite the successes of Posada Amazonas, worrying signs persist. Aiding social equality
can lessen this footprint. The employment creates dependency on tourism for income, and
confusion about the benefits employees receive has created tension with the CNI. Perhaps most
threatening of all, the introduction of this new industry has taken workers out of a traditional way
of life and has here led to a loss of cultural practices. This Peruvian example demonstrates a
number of lessons. First, it may be necessary to limit employment and scale of the lodge to
ensure that the community can subsist in its absence. Second, RFE staff may need to make an
extra effort to elucidate their process to the CNI in an attempt to defuse myths about employment
at Posada Amazonas. Finally, employers must be willing to allow workers to continue cultural
practices near work, even if it is not the most efficient mode of operation. Currently, workers eat
the same, non-traditional food as their patrons; one approach for this would be to make separate,
more traditional meals for employees than for guests. This type of thinking could be expanded in
all aspects of the job in order to accommodate different cultural practices.
Both Gales Point Manatee and Posada Amazonas demonstrate the potential and the
danger in creating ecotourism projects in less developed areas. Synthesizing qualitative and
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quantitative studies have provided a number of important lessons. First, tourism will have a
massive impact economically on an area and may lead to dependency. As a solution, companies
might restrict the size of their operation based on the social equity needs of the local community.
Second, culture is a fragile entity that requires much circumspection when beginning projects of
this scale. For this reason, leading collaboratively with the community is crucial to the success of
ecotourism ventures. Finally, elucidation of payment methods and tolerance for cultural practices
are important steps in reducing impact on indigenous cultures by outsiders and ensuring fairness
in the indigenous society. Ecotourism lodges created with these principles in mind may be able
to provide a sustainable, economically viable option with minimal cultural impact.
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VI. Works Cited
Belsky, J M. “Misrepresenting Communities: The Politics of Community- Based Rural
Ecotourism in Gales Point Manatee, Belize”: Rural Sociology 1999.
Driscoll, L R. “Changing Communities: The Influence of Ecotourism Profits on
Cultural Identity in Southeastern Peru.” 2010.
“Ecotourism Peru – Community Based Lodge Tambopata | Rainforest Expeditions.” Accessed 1
Sept. 2010. <http://www.perunature.com/lodges/ posada-amazonas/ecotourism-in-
tambopata-peru>
Fritsch, A J & Johannsen, K. Ecotourism in Appalachia: Marketing the Mountains.
The University of Kentucky Press, 2004.
Horwich, R. & Lyon, J. “Community-Base Development As a Conservation Tool: The
Community Baboon Sanctuary and the Gales Point Manatee Project.” 1998.
MacQuarrie, K. Where the Andes meet the Amazon. Francis O. Patthey & Sons, 2001.
Stronza, A. “Because it is Ours”: Community-Based Ecotourism in the Peruvian Amazon. 2000.
Stronza, A. & Gordillo, J. “Community Views of Ecotourism”: Annals of Tourism Research.
2008.