| Before visiting ecotourism
projects in Chiapas,
I contacted the San Cristóbal de las Casas's Community Tourism
Network (C.T.N.). The CTN links together groups of local, rural
people whose employment is comprised of corn farmers, coffee producers,
weavers and artisans. Networking provides additional support for
community and/or NGO initiatives to those who are interested in
diversifying their incomes through the promotion of their products
or services.
The Cafe Museo Cafe is an example of a CTN coffee house that sells
a local Co-op coffee under the name of la Coordinadora de Pequenos
Productores de Cafe de Chiapas, A.C. and also has an associated
museum and cultural center. Other CTN projects include, the Organizacion
de Medicos Indigenas del Estado de Chiapas (OMIECH) which is a museum
of traditional medicine; the Lenateros, a recycled paper workshop;
and the Maya Ik weavers.
Prior to leaving for Miramar, I spoke with Fernando Ochoa, member
of DANA A.C., an NGO supporting the ecotourism project in the Comitan
farming cooperative. He provided me with appropriate journey arrangements
and valuable contact information. The focus of my trip was ecotourism,
so he suggested I contact Ejido Emiliano Zapata, who could be found
on the shores of Laguna Miramar. I was traveling independently and
responsible for finding my own destiny, however I was fortunate
enough to meet some wonderful travel companions along the way.
Laguna Miramar
The impromptu group of companions (a Spaniard, a German and me, a
Mexican) arrived from Comitan at the cooperative farm, which is a
5 minute walk from the enormous military base at San Quintin. Arriving
late at night we asked curious neighbours for the President of the
Co-op. A small, shoe-less boy offered to be our guide and took us
straight to Presidente Ejido Emiliano Zapata.
After introducing ourselves and delivering a letter from Fernando
Ochoa, we had superb supper at the house of a villager; scrabbled
eggs, beans, and tortillas. We ended our evening sleeping in the
main cooperative house on rented hammocks or on the floor.
The next day we got off to an early start so as to have time to
have a quick chat with the community authorities and the people
responsible for the ecotourism project.
They wanted us to help promote their ecotourism development and
were eager to share information about the project. In order to receive
government approval to build small cabins with environmental friendly
architecture and techniques next to the lagoon, a required Environmental
Impact Assessment was carried out by Conservation International
and DANA A.C.. The EIA had been a lengthy and expensive investment
for the community.
After our short conversation we had breakfast and started off
on the 7-kilometer long trail to the lagoon with our young guide.
Horses could have been rented, but we wanted to hike. It turned
out to be rather rough and slow going however, since the trails
were very muddy. Our reward was the mere sight of the lagoon and
then the warmth of its water. It was worth all the bumpy roads,
mosquitoes, mud and other hazards we had encountered.
We rented a canoe so the guide could show us a small part of the
lagoon?s astonishing surroundings and special landmarks. We saw
a pregnant spider monkey and all day long heard the nearby presence
of howling monkeys. We then returned to our camp, which was comprised
of a couple of big palapas (palm tree roofed structures, with no
walls and dirt floor) where we hung our rented hammocks and took
a well deserved nap.
After a couple of hours the guide left us to fend for ourselves
in the wilderness. For dinner, we had only the canned tuna fish
we had carried in our enormous backpacks. Fortunately, early in
the evening we met a fisherman and his children who, without thinking
twice, gave us five trout and a lemon as a gift for supper. We were
able to start a fire and enjoy our roasted fish. Surrounded by darkness
and mysterious sounds, the light of the fire and the smell of our
dinner turned Miramar into a paradise.
After an eventless night, our second guide arrived in the morning
to take us to some of the landmarks we had not had time to see the
day before. We helped with the paddling this time and admired the
clarity of the water. Our guide then showed us safely back to our
camp, and again departed. At about four p.m., we decided to walk
back to the Co-op, but this time it took us longer than the hike
in, even though the trail was drier than before.
This was the closest I have ever come to visiting a relatively
undisturbed, natural area.
Paraphrasing the definition of a Real Ecotourism Experience by
Hector Ceballos-Lascurain:
"Visitation of relatively undisturbed natural areas,
in order to enjoy and appreciate nature (and any accompanying cultural
features - both past and present), in a community looking to promote
conservation, that has low negative visitor impact, and that provides
for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local populations."
This was truly a real ecotourism experience.
Reflections
After this trip, I began to think seriously about my experiences and
the challenges of developing ecotourism in Mexico.
1. Target Market (What is the profile of a person that would be
interested in experiencing this type of tourism?):
The present lodging facilities will not appeal to a top end tourist.
One could consider the average backpacker, but sometimes they are
not willing to pay the price. The daily expenditure, including food,
lodging, guide and canoe is around 280 pesos, but can be more or
less expensive, depending on the services required. As an information
provider and tour operator, one has to focus on finding the target
market that will find these experiences attractive, and/or work
on a social awareness campaign (about how the money gained is for
the benefit of the community and the ecosystems conserved) focused
on potential customers.
2. Environmental Consciousness:
While traveling around Chiapas, through its colonial towns, villages
and natural parks one sees the constant presence of rubbish. A
newcomer to Mexico gets used to a typical scene of a person on
a bus, (female or male, young or old) finishing their drink, opening
the window and throwing out the 2010
Vision.
Unfortunately, it is not only the locals who litter. In the camp
site where we stayed next to the Laguna, recent campers had left
their garbage and did not carry it back out for proper disposal.
The responsibility and effort for a change of attitude has to
come from the visiting tour operators and their eco-travelers,
local authorities, government and private companies.
3. Inexperience in the tourism industry:
The tourist client can be a very demanding, especially since they
want to enjoy their limited time as much as possible, before going
back to their daily routines. Areas that need attention include:
the correct and clear pricing of products and services, attention
to the basic needs of the tourist, safety measures during the
day and night, informed guides (of the history and natural surroundings)
and cleanliness of the lodging facilities. What helps Mexicans
in this area is their natural friendliness and hospitality, but
more specific training in tourism hospitality is required.
After visiting workshops, natural reserves, colonial towns, indigenous
communities, talking to coffee producers and agricultural producers,
one notices the need of the rural areas to diversify their income.
Some decide to sell their land, others to sell their forests, but
others have taken the option of protecting their ecosystems while
gaining financial security through ecotourism. The job demanded
of us as travel providers and/or eco-travelers, is to support these
projects through basic word of mouth promotion, and to create detailed
marketing plans. We also have to be creative in offering new and
different destinations and activities. Alternative tourism activities
could include coffee picking in Chiapas, volunteering to help clean
up natural protected areas, or learning to weave in an indigenous
community. There are many choices. |
