The Quechua-Tacana villagers of San Jose Uchupiamonas, a community located within Madidi National Park, undertook this ecotourism initiative to generate job opportunities and fend off increased pressure from logging and oil interests. Conservation International provides the community with training and technical assistance in lodge management and marketing, food preparation, tourist guiding, and wildlife monitoring. Approximately 40 community villagers manage and own the business - utilizing skills learned during CI s training courses. Madidi National Park spans nearly 4.5 million acres in the tropical Andes, and is home to impressive numbers of bird species, including toucans, macaws, aracaris, trogons, and mot-mots. As one of the planet s 24 biodiversity hotspots as identified by CI, the tropical Andes harbors one of the world s highest concentrations of endemic plant and animal species - those species originally found nowhere else on Earth.
Hotspots are also areas under imminent threat of destruction.
In recent years Madidi and the surrounding area have faced increasing threats from populations encroaching upon the protected area, as well as from logging, oil extraction, and mining interests. I ve witnessed the impact of conservation-based investment on the lives of the people in Madidi National Park. Chalalan s thatch-roof cabins, adorned with handicrafts from local artisans, offer comfortable accommodations. From the cabin balconies, guests can enjoy a breathtaking view of Chalalan Lake and the vast expanse of Madidi s forests. Local guides lead Chalalan s guests on searches for troops of monkeys, herds of wild peccary, nesting macaws, and the elusive jaguar.