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Back on Track in Gabon

October 8, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

The departure of Africa’s Eden from Gabon last year was sad news for the country, as we reported here. A problem over plane connections into its lodges at Loango and elsewhere caused the Belgian-based company to suspend business.

Africa’s Eden was largely – if not entirely – responsible for Gabon’s rise in the last decade on the world travel map. It had not only created camps such as its flagship Loango Lodge and Evengué Lodge, but it had contributed extensively to conservation projects, including studies of the lowland gorillas.

In September, Africa’s Eden announced that the hiccups had been sorted out, and that it would be back in business in Gabon. More than $1 million is also being spent to improve the camps, extend the runway, and increase the capacity of the local school. Loango will reopen for business in mid-December.

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Filed Under: Africa, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, G-M, Gabon, News Tagged With: africa's eden, gorilla

Singita 4X5 (stars, that is)

September 14, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Singita Lebombo

Is it possible for a travel destination to be luxurious, hot (as in magazine-worthy), and sustainable? If anyone proves it, Singita does.

This African-based company has properties that go a long way to show that their hearts and minds are in the right place – they care about where they are and what they are doing. Travel is their business, but a business that has to last and in a country that has to last. Singita Grumeti, in Tanzania, has virtually turned what used to be a virtual wasteland (after years of illegal hunting and poaching) into an Eden. Bordering on the Serengeti, the 350,000 acres now have as good as you’ll get animal-wise (and probably even better than) in the iconic park next-door.

Sabora Tented Camp, Grumeti

Working with the community surrounding Grumeti is as much a part of the day-to-day as it is in Pamushana,  in Zimbabwe. For years now the property, which lies adjacent to the stunning and barely visited Gonarezhou park, has served thousands of meals daily to local children. Singita’s community work dates back to 1998 already. Whether it is buying products locally, supporting a cooking academy for staff (watch the video), or contributing to local schools, the company is doing it.

At the ever-popular Lebombo and Sweni lodges in Kruger Park, South Africa, Singita has tried to emphasize low-impact design, creating stunning rooms made of glass, steel, and reeds, perched singly on a ridge. An ongoing program of monitoring the wildlife and land around Singita’s first lodges, Ebony and Boulders lodges, in Sabi Sand, South Africa, endeavors to keep the much-used park seemingly untouched.

Children at Pamushana

At each of these properties, the work with low-impact design, the community, and the wildlife goes on daily and never ends. And that Singita doesn’t forget.

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Filed Under: Africa, Anti-Poaching, Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, Health, N-S, News, South Africa, T-Z, Women Tagged With: cooking school, feeding program, grumeti, pamushana, singita

Ibo Island Lodge, Mozambique

July 1, 2011 By admin 2 Comment

A Pool in a Place Like No Other

Who They Are

The unforgettable Ibo Island Lodge lies just north of the mainland city of Pemba in pristine northern Mozambique, and the island is one of 27 that make up the breathtakingly beautiful Quirimbas Archipelago.

Ibo, 1912

Remote and untouched by commercial development, Ibo is one of the most fascinating, idyllic, and romantic islands – adjectives that easily apply to the lodge too. For several hundred years Ibo was a prosperous Arab trading post on the east coast of Africa. Three forts, a beautiful old Catholic church, and numerous ancient trading buildings stand guard over the sea.  Pirates, ivory, intrigue and the never-to-be-forgotten slave trade are a part of its rich history.

Position at Sunset

The lodge takes up three magnificent mansions, each over a century old and located right on a prime waterfront site, where dhows sail out to sea at high tide. Each of the 9 en-suite rooms is individually designed, large, air-conditioned, and they boast antiques and handcrafted furniture with marvelous wooden doors and shutters that evoke the original design. Guests can immerse themselves in the unchanged, ancient culture of Ibo and the rare chance to interact with the wonderfully hospitable islanders.

Meals feature fresh Ibo-grown organic vegetables, fruits and produce, traditional specialties, and, of course, seafood. Romantic dinners are served on the wide tranquil verandas or on the roof terrace restaurant, both with awesome views over the sea.

The Sand Spit off Ibo

What They Are Doing

Ibo Island has 4000 inhabitants, of whom only a small number had formal employment. The lodge has made a significant impact on the local economy, employing and also training up to 150 employees during the construction and development phase.

Click here for more videos about Ibo.

The Main Lounge

Before the lodge’s nascence, the community had no exposure to tourism or the outside world. Few had any education and in many cases did not even speak or write Portuguese.  The lodge has provided a solid training facility with the development of the Ibo Island Community Training Centre, delivering education programs that deal with, among other things, English literacy, guiding techniques, tourism etiquette, small enterprise development, and the presentation of the unique cultural and historical features of Ibo. The facility is free to all community members.

Jewelry Made by Ibo Silversmiths

Making use of the old Arab coffee plantations that still exist on Ibo, the lodge hand grinds and open-fire-roasts its world-class coffee. Its agricultural project will focus on the production of coffee, as well as a market garden producing fresh vegetables, herbs, and fruit for the lodge.

Even the Decay is an Artwork

A marine turtle research project aims to support international research efforts into turtle biology and ecology and to protect marine turtles, and turtle eggs, from illegal and inadvertent harvesting on Ibo.

Silversmiths, part of an ancient tradition here, hand-craft exquisite intricate jewelry using old Arab techniques and tools. The key element to sustain this craft is providing high quality raw materials.  In order to do this, the lodge has set up a distribution network with a company in Cape Town called Africa Nova who will be able to provide a far greater return for the silversmiths. This jewelry is found no where else in the world and guests can observe the art and commission pieces from the lodge’s silversmith project.

By creating jobs where there were none, Ibo Lodge has had other positive influences, reducing the reliance on fishing as a primary source of income and food. Among other projects the lodge is involved in is a local Montessori school.

Rooftop View

In Their Own Words

“As the first tourism investor on Ibo Island and specialist tour operator to the Quirimbas Archipelago, the company believes that it is critical that local communities benefit from tourism development. One of the key approaches of Ibo Island Lodge has been that of supporting and creating projects on Ibo that will serve to create income and livelihoods for other members of the communities.”

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Filed Under: Africa, Community, Conservation, Education, Features, Ibo Island Lodge, Mozambique Tagged With: dhow, querimbas, silversmiths, slavery, turtle

A Country With Heart. Zambia?

June 7, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Our mission and hope at A World Different is quite simple. To showcase any person or business in the travel industry – hotel, lodge, airline, you name it – that makes a difference to their little piece of the world. You might not even notice it while lying next to their pool, going on their safari drive, or enjoying their cocktail at sunset, but your good time is doing something ‘good’ for the world.

Kafue River

Certain countries and hotels are repeatedly brought to our attention for the way they train locals, pay for schools, invest in local artists, buy medicine, fund anti-poaching – if it’s not Costa Rica, it’s any number of lodges in Kenya or a resort in Indonesia. But one rather unusual candidate has started popping up in recent months – Zambia.

The Bushcamp Company's Chindeni Camp, South Luangwa

Until a decade ago, Zambia was relatively unknown to travelers looking at Africa as a first-time destination. Its economy small, it didn’t have the resources to fund the kind of international tourism campaigns of South Africa or Tanzania. So it has always come across as an also-ran, second or third choice. Its best national parks, South Luangwa and Lower Zambezi, have also never had the cachet of the Serengeti or the Masai Mara.

Sausage Tree Camp, Lower Zambezi

In a way, though, this off-the-radarness might have contributed to Zambia’s charm today. There are 19 national parks, none of them nearly as crammed with lodges as Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa, with the competition good and yet friendly. The philosophy among operators seems to be less about being cut-throat than about working together towards a common goal. And the goal is to take care of the country without and within.

The SLCS on Patrol

First in a notable series of initiatives is Zambian Horizons, a group of lodges that, despite being competitors, pool their resources to publicize the country. At this year’s Indaba, the huge annual African travel-trade powwow in Durban, South Africa, these camps walked away with most Best Of awards. Working together has worked for them individually.

Inside the country the South Luangwa Conservation Society (SLCS) keeps tabs on conservation at every level. More than a dozen camps and lodges participate, including Flatdogs, Robin Pope Safaris, and Norman Carr Safaris. (See more). Each camp often does its own work too, generating small offshoot projects, and offering trips to local communities or craftspeople. Robin Pope Safaris is a case in point.

The Victoria Falls, Zambia

As in any country with parkland and a burgeoning population nearby clamoring for land, there is a knock-on effect. Animals get poached for commercial reasons, for sustenance, or for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some get shot for damaging farmers’ crops.

The School Gets New Chairs

By the early ’90’s, the Zambian Wildlife Authority was struggling to tackle the problem of increased poaching. Local tour operators and lodges offered to help ZAWA by providing scouts, whose salaries needed to be paid and who required uniforms, vehicles, and training. For this they carried out fundraising drives. And so was born the Rapid Action Team – better known as Ratz.

Planting New Trees

Planting New Trees

Over time the lodge operators and the Ratz team realized there was a lot more they could do, especially in terms of the conflict between humans and wildlife, education, and wildlife rescue and rehabilitation. Ratz became the SLCS, and its programs have expanded and flourished. In 2009, it even started a mini-marathon, which drew scouts, police, farmers, schoolchildren, teachers, and members of the Zambian Air Force. At the last event there were more than 300 runners. This year, it launched an Eco Awards program that is focused solely on local works.

Project Luangwa, meanwhile, is a charitable organization supported by five safari operators in South Luangwa – besides Flatdogs and Robin Pope, there is Kafunta River Lodge, Shenton Safaris, and Crocodile Valley Camp. It aims to help local communities improve their long-term economic prospects while also avoiding a negative impact on the environment and wildlife. By developing and improving schools, creating a vocational training center, and supporting the micro-financing of small businesses, it tries to give families the chance of a lasting and sustainable income.

Working with Chilies

Among Project Luangwa’s innovative projects is one to keep elephants and other wildlife away from crops by using chilies. Yes, chilies. The peppers are used to make fences and are also added to bricks made of elephant dung that are burned at nighttime to keep animals away. Locals are offered chili seedlings to grow themselves. Project Luangwa also builds schools (check out its website to get an idea of its range of activities).

On the Zambezi River

In the Lower Zambezi national park, SLCS’s equivalent is Conservation Lower Zambezi. Members include Sausage Tree Camp and Chiawa. For the past 8 years it has been funded largely by the Danish Embassy, which has allowed it to buy a plane and establish a base camp outside the park boundaries. From its environmental education center, it runs a mobile education unit, media promotion, and safari guide training.

That many travelers to Zambia don’t know about these projects says a lot about the lodges and operators that fund and run them. They could shout their achievements from the rooftops, but they rather focus on giving their guests a great safari, a great time, and a great lodge. Doing good things for the locals they do behind the scenes. For them it’s all in a day’s work.

- Caren Banks

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Filed Under: Africa, Anti-Poaching, Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, T-Z, Zambia Tagged With: chili, conservation lower zambezi, danish, microfinance, project luangwa, slcs

explora Atacama, Chile

May 13, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

One Way to Explore Atacama

Who They Are
Situated in northern Chile between the Pacific and the Cordillera de Los Andes, San Pedro de Atacama is an oasis located 8,015 feet above sea level. This area of desert, oasis, volcanoes, salt fields, and hot springs has for centuries played host to the pre-Columbian Andean cultures of South America.

The Tulur Room

The bright and airy Hotel de Larache, the base for explora Atacama, is set in the moonscape-like Atacama Desert. Recent renovations to the 50-room hotel include the addition of four handsome guest suites, two sala de exploradores, a Turkish Bath and open-air Jacuzzis, and a glass-walled, open-style kitchen.

Seeing exploration has always been at the heart of the explora experience, the sala de exploradores, covered in a wealth of maps and photographs of the area, offer a great space to consider your options for the next day – going to your destination by foot, horse, mountain bike, or vehicle – all while enjoying a drink from the bar nextdoor. The hotel also has its own observatory, for some of the finest stargazing on the continent.

The Puretama Hot Springs

What They Are Doing
Outposts of humanity are few and far between in these remote parts of Chile. Yet their impact on explora’s mission is incalculable, providing travelers with unforgettable glimpses into the culture, customs, and natural beauty. Indeed, without them a journey here wouldn’t be the same. And so, over the years, the Santiago-based travel operator, which also has lodges in Patagonia and on Easter Island, has made constant efforts to support the communities it visits.

Colors of the Nearby Village

In 2000 explora helped refashion the Puretama Hot Springs near San Pedro from a few dirty pools into an inviting destination for travelers and locals to relax and bathe, an effort that not only garnered a world architecture award but also, after being given to the Atacameños, generates $150,000 annually for the community. The money is used for the Internado Andino boarding school and other projects.

Also, explora guides teach English in local schools throughout the Atacama, including the elementary school in San Pedro and others in Solor, Talabrea, Camar Socaire and Rio Grande. The company also makes donations to Juriques, a local medical institution that aids children with physical disabilities.

Under Desert Skies

The head of explora’s Atacama guiding operations works with a clinic in San Pedro to promote health awareness, recently taking 150 locals on a walk and then feeding them. Schoolchildren are brought to the property and shown around and fed. Besides its own recycling efforts, explora will this year establish training on recycling and other environmental initiatives at schools throughout the region.

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Filed Under: Chile, Community, Education, Environment, Health, The Americas, explora Atacama Tagged With: desert, horses, hot springs, san pedro

Adrère Amellal, Egypt

May 13, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Who They Are

Siwa Oasis, located about 70 kilometers east of the Libyan border, has been inhabited since 10,000 BC but was re-created just a few years ago by Environmental Quality International, an environmental consulting company.  EQI’s president, Mounir Neamtalla, first visited in 1996 and was so inspired by the beauty and spirituality of this remote corner of Egypt he expanded EQI’s advisory services to include direct investments in sustainable development – and so Siwa was reborn.

Steeped in history, it is renowned for being the site of the Oracle of Amon, whom Alexander the Great consulted. Visiting Siwa today you will find it very much the same as Alexander did, featuring majestic rock formations, luxuriant groves and dazzling salt lakes throughout the oasis.

Pool at Adrère Amellal

The Siwa Sustainable Development Initiative includes three different accommodations, ranging in price from $45 to $330 per night. The most luxurious, Adrère Amellal, is 20 minutes outside of Siwa and has 40 en-suite rooms overlooking Lake Siwa and is nestled at the foot of the White Mountain cliffs.  Built with indigenous material using traditional Siwan building techniques, the lodge has a minimal impact on the environment.  There is no electricity, rooms are lit with beeswax candles. the stars light up the nights, and the swimming pool is fed by local springs.

Shali Lodge, set in the middle of a lush palm grove in the heart of Siwa, is built of rock salt in the traditional architectural style. It has 20 charming suites that are simply but luxuriously furnished, all overlooking an internal courtyard.

At Albabenshal

Albabenshal is located, quite spectacularly, outside the jagged ruins of Old Shali, a 13th-century citadel in the center of Siwa.  A restoration of what were once rundown Siwan dwellings, Albabenshal has 13 rooms on three levels, linked through a system of alleyways and terraces overlooking the town center.

What They Are Doing

The Siwa Sustainable Development Initiative has brought significant benefits to the local community, while protecting Siwa’s delicate ecology and revitalizing its unique cultural heritage.  It has renewed Siwans’ pride in their cultural heritage, creating a wave of building in the Siwan traditional architectural style and has resulted in a decree by the governor of Matruh that all new constructions be built in the traditional style.

Siwan Woman Doing Embroidery

Most importantly, the initiative has created environmentally and culturally sustainable employment and income-generating opportunities that draw on local materials and expertise. At least 600 Siwans are employed in areas such as the supply of raw materials, production of furniture and handicrafts, transport of goods and workers, and as tour operators.

Creations of Siwa

In partnership with the International Finance Corporation, EQI is working to develop Siwa into a center of excellence for the production of organically grown produce and agro-culinary products, while improving the standard of living of Siwan farmers. The project, which hopes to benefit up to 450 farmers and 50 off-farm workers,  aims to add value to Siwan agricultural produce by promoting the adoption of organic farming and farm management systems that are compatible with international certifications. There are crop-prefinancing and cattle-financing schemes, a renewable energy initiative, and a packaging warehouse.

In August 2001, EQI launched a cottage industry aimed at revitalizing Siwa’s traditional handicrafts and promoting a culture of artisanship among women in the oasis. An initial grant from the British embassy went towards upgrading the embroidery skills of 50 Siwan women to ensure workmanship of the highest standard. The project allows women to work from home or in an all-women setting, in keeping with Siwan tradition. Within a year, the number of women participating in the project had reached 300. Siwa Creations has worked with several haute couture companies in Italy, including Ermanno Scervino and Nia Ferrante.

(Hotel View and Creations photos by Khaled Nagy.)

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Filed Under: Adrère Amellal, Africa, Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Egypt, Environment, Women Tagged With: architecture, artisans, embroidery, handicrafts, organic, siwa, women

Flatdogs Camp

March 21, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Who They Are

Flatdogs is, in this day of high-end safari lodges, a good and affordable alternative. Owner managed, the camp overlooks the Luangwa River in the South Luangwa National Park.

The Treehouse Master Bedroom

With its choice of chalets, safari tents, and the exclusive Jackal-berry Treehouse, Flatdogs is ideal for many a traveler, from honeymooner to family (it is one of the few children-friendly camps) to diehard return visitor. Guests can drive themselves to the camp or fly into Mfuwe airport and start their safari from there. Many safari camps and lodges have a set menu (albeit with one or two choices per course), but Flatdogs has an a la carte menu that allows guests to choose their meals daily.

The Treehouse

The quality of the safari guiding is well known in the region. The guides, eight of them at present, who all come from the area, are a fund of information not only on indigenous culture but also on the history of the area and local conservation practices.

What They Are Doing

Chiyembekezo is a school that was set up entirely by local people for orphaned and vulnerable children. Kelvin, the founder, was concerned about the number of children he found walking the streets, fishing with their fathers, and generally not attending school. With their own money, he and a couple of other local businessmen hired a teacher (a fantastically committed woman named Dailes, who they paid when they could) and started a school in a small house. From there it has grown, and when it was providing education to fifty children five mornings a week Kelvin asked Flatdogs advice about raising funds.

Impressed with his commitment and initiative, the camp happily offered to help. Through combined fund=raising efforts, the teacher’s salary is paid, uniforms for the children are bought, and educational resources provided. The school uses St Agnes’ Anglican Church for classes, and Flatdogs recently helped install electricity and repainted the interior of the building. Future plans include the construction of a small secure storeroom, the upgrading of the playground, and sending Dailes for further training.

Flatdogs has also assisted Mfuwe Secondary School by building two classroom blocks, and it is raising funds for items such as new desks. At present Flatdogs repairs all broken desks from schools in the area.

Fresh from the Garden

Produce at Flatdogs is locally grown, and the camp has helped finance the installation of a water pump to help a local named Rodgers with his irrigation. In its own garden, the camp grows herbs and vegetables and will be helping Mfuwe Secondary School do the same to encourage kids to learn about conservation-savvy farming practices and about the variety of fruit and vegetables suitable for the local soil.

Wake Up!

Flatdogs makes a careful point of not buying only locally. “Buy too much of a scarce commodity,” it says, “and prices rise beyond the reach of local people. So we try to balance our needs, the demands of the business, and the prosperity of local people.” When Flatdogs requires lots of a product in short supply, it encourages Rodgers to grow plenty of it. So every tomato in camp will be local, but none of the fish will be, because it is a valuable protein source for locals and, says Flatdogs, “we want to keep prices down.”

At Chiyembekezo School

Flatdogs is involved in various women’s projects promoting women’s rights and independence by encouraging continued education and careers. It works with Project Luangwa through Eunice Nakachinda, who runs small projects in local villages, particularly with the aim of getting girls into school. Most girls are keen to learn, but they are often required to stay at home to help the family, so her project is one of educating the villagers on the value of education for all children.

Rodgers at Work

The camp also takes about 100 local children on safari each year to teach them the benefits of animals and to show them how peaceful they are in their own environments, to dispel the fear they have of animals who wander into villages at night. Each of Flatdog’s eight guides takes a vehicle full of kids out in the low season. The children are usually in their last two years of school, and most of them belong to the conservation clubs at their school. “We target these children because a couple of other local tourism operators offer something similar but for younger age groups.”

Besides solar heating for water, Flatdogs has some innovative recycling programs. Paper and cardboard go to schools to turn into bricks for cooking. Cans go to Mango Tree Crafts (based at Tribal Textiles), who use them to make a variety of quirky products. Glass and plastic go to Lusaka.

Click here for a Tribal Textiles video

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Filed Under: Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, Flatdogs Camp, T-Z, Uncategorized, Women, Zambia Tagged With: children, garden, luangwa, women

Jicaro Island Ecolodge, Nicaragua

February 14, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Afloat at Jicaro

Who They Are

Started by London businesswoman Karen Emanuel after she saw a sign ‘Island for Sale’ when she was visiting Nicaragua in 2007 – and then she bought it! – Jicaro is barely a year old and is already attracting praise and awards. Located not far from the ocean on a private island in Lake Nicaragua, its 9 casitas that look across the water to Mombacho volcano are all extremely private but only a short walk from the pool, the wellness center, and the main facilities.

The Zen of a Casita

Each casita has two levels, with the large bedroom above, and both floors have spacious decks to take in the views. The restaurant’s menu has plenty of options and prides itself on the selection of fresh fish from the lake and the sea, local vegetables and fruit, and locally raised chicken and beef. Besides yoga sessions and a variety of massage and wellness treatments, Jicaro offers tours to the historic Zapatera island and the volcano, hikes, and boating.

A Casita Hidden in the Greenery

An interesting aside: Guests can learn about local foods’ history, uses, and the different ways it can be prepared. Papayas, for instance, can be turned into juice, jam, pickled sauce, or a salad with feta cheese. Eat up!

What They Are Doing

Jicaro couldn’t do better than to take its sustainability lead from Costa Rica, which is exactly what it did. The team in charge of managing Jicaro has a decade-long track record in the field.

Built entirely from timber reclaimed from trees blown down by 2007’s Hurricane Felix, the buildings and furniture are made of tropical hardwoods which have a controlled wood certification. This the lodge did in conjunction with Simplemente Madera, designers and builders of both furniture and buildings in Jicaro that were already supporting sustainable forestry with the indigenous communities in the hurricane-affected areas before the devastation.

The Pool

Though still in its early stages, Jicaro is developing a program to work with local schools, focusing on environmental education, providing supplies and materials, and building infrastructure. To start with, they will work with three schools and just over 200 children, all under the age of 12.

From August through December, the Learning is Change program will, for two hours a week, use art, music, drama, and multimedia in order to expand the children’s approach to learning. Subjects to be taught with a combination of textbooks, hands-on activities, games, and field trips will include conservation, climate change, flora and fauna of the Nicaragua Lake, and sustainability. In order to achieve this, Jicaro is working with, as well as training, one of the female community leaders and four young adults from the local islands.

Kayaking on Lake Nicaragua

Three times a year Jicaro will give financial aid, in the form of infrastructure, supplies, and materials, to where they are most needed in the three schools. It will work in coordination with World Vision.

Starting in July, all employees will be take 6-hour courses that cover biodiversity, water, climate change, and sustainability. Each month after that there will be a field trip, homework activity, and a relevant guest speaker.

Recycling in Nicaragua is not as widespread as in Costa Rica, but last month saw the introduction of the employee recycling program.  Though it is voluntary, each employee is strongly encouraged to separate their garbage at home and then bring it to the hotel, which will dispose of it with the hotel’s recyclables.

A Lake Resident

In Their Own Words

“It is part of our goal to have sustainability streamlined into the lives of the people that work for us. We feel that exposing them thoroughly to the issues, making it fun and creative, will awaken a passion of some sort in them and motivate them to start making changes in their lives.”

Upstairs at a Casita

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Filed Under: Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, Jicaro Island Ecolodge, Nicaragua, Restoration & Repurposing, Women Tagged With: cayuga, Costa Rica, forest, yoga

October in Saba

August 13, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Mt. Scenery, Saba

Once more this year on the Dutch Caribbean island of Saba, the non-profit foundation Sea & Learn will be putting on a fabulous learning program in the slower month of October. It will focus on environmental issues, particularly those important to the island.

The event brings to the island a variety of naturalists, scientists, and academics in fields ranging from sharks and dolphins to bats and orchids. Besides nightly presentations, participants can join field and research projects or assist in nature surveys. All events are free.

Not only are the events beneficial to the schools, locals, and after-school programs, but it brings business to the hotels, restaurants, and shops when traditionally there’s hardly anyone visiting this Caribbean island.  The restaurants get creative by putting together special menus at great prices. Good idea!

This year’s events include “The complex patterns of fish sex changes” by Graham Forrester, “What’s Rumbling with Caribbean Earthquakes” by Rod Stewart,  and “Where’s the Fish?” by Matt Potensky, a shark researcher who explains the dynamics of removing the top predator in our oceans.

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Filed Under: Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Saba, The Americas Tagged With: marine

Feynan Ecolodge, Jordan

August 10, 2010 By admin Leave a Comment

Desert Life

Who They Are

Powerless Chic

Deep in the heart of the mountainous Jordanian desert, in a place known as the Wadi Feynan, lies an idyllic lodge quite unlike any other. Set against this glorious landscape, Feynan Ecolodge has 26 gorgeously simple rooms that all face the wadi. Because there is no electricity, light comes from candles – and we mean lots of candles! – and the showers are solar-powered. Spacious terraces, one on the roof, give you a view of the startling terrain by day and stars by night.

Situated about 215 km. south of Amman, off the Dead Sea-Aqaba highway, Feynan is not far from the famous archeological site of Petra and is in one of the oldest continuously inhabited areas in the world. The archaeological ruins date back more than 12,000 years, and there are some 100 sites are in the area, many under excavation and others still unexplored. Bedouin live traditionally in their tents in the surrounding valleys.

The Ruins of a Byzantine Church

A short walk from the lodge are Neolithic ruins that illustrate the shift from nomadic to village lifestyles are some of the oldest copper mines in the world, where Christian slaves were later worked to death by the Romans, a Roman aqueduct and mill, and remnants of Byzantine churches.

Two Rare Sinai Agama

Feynan is also situated in the 300-sq.-km. Dana Biosphere Reserve, which encompasses the four different bio-geographical zones of the country: Mediterranean, Irano-Turanian, Saharo-Arabian and Sudanian. Owing to its diverse elevations and geographical formations, Dana hosts a wide array of flora and fauna – more than 800 plant species, three of which are unique to the area, and 449 different animals that include threatened species such as the sand cat, the Syrian wolf, the lesser kestrel, and the spiny-tailed lizard. Dana also falls within the Dana Important Bird Area.

Au Naturel

What They Are Doing

Feynan employs its staff from the local Bedouin community, whose only alternative is to herd goats, which seriously damage the fragile environment. Part of Feynan’s revenue is allocated to helping conserve Dana and protecting endangered species. Water is sourced from nearby springs and is used carefully and under strict controls. Food excess and waste are composted to reuse as fertilizer.

Preparing the Evening's Lights

The solar-powered lodge illuminates its rooms with candles, which are made on site by Bedouin women. Other women work at an annex creating leather goods that are sold at Feynan and other reserves in Jordan. All transportation to and from the lodge, Petra, Aqaba, and elsewhere is provided by Bedouin using their own pickups, providing income to some 40 families. Feynan is introducing extracurricular programs to teach English and other subjects in English to local children at the community school.

The lodge is operated by EcoHotels and owned by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, a nongovernmental organization established in 1966 under the patronage of the late King Hussein and devoted to the preservation of Jordan’s natural resources. The RSCN introduced its people-centered approach to the management of protected areas in Dana in 1994.

The Wadi by Night

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Filed Under: Asia & Middle East, Carbon Footprint, Community, Conservation, Education, Environment, Features, Feynan Ecolodge, Jordan, Women Tagged With: archeology, bedouin, byzantine, candles, dana biosphere, desert
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