Tambopata Community Conservation Roleplay Project

Tambopata Community Conservation Roleplay Project Oscar Perez, Co-FounderRainforest of Expeditions Allison Brown INST 4475 Dr. Pearson 30 November, 2020 The Tambopata National Reserve and Bahuaja-Sonene National Park are untapped reserves of sustainable potential for Tambopata, the Ese’eja and Harakmbut, and surrounding communities. The most effective way forward, both economically and environmentally for Tambopata is through sustainable tourism that both acknowledges the environmental factors and indigenous populations of the region. Hence, the most fiscally and environmentally responsible choice for the zoning of Tambopata is Proposal 1. We at Rainforest Expeditions find Proposal 1 to be the most beneficial in the region and the most cognizant of the Ese’eja and Harakmbut populations and the need to restore and protect Tambopata’s rainforests. This proposal allocates some land usage for direct use (such as hunting, fishing, agriculture) and the potential for mining and logging interests to use the allotted land. At Rainforest Expeditions, we find that Proposal 1 is the best option moving forward for four key reasons, the environmental benefits, the economic benefits of this proposal, the community benefits, and how Proposal 1 coincides with the interests of indigenous populations and Ramon Mishaja. However, before examining why Rainforest Expeditions is backing Proposal 1, we believe it is foremost important to acknowledge the Ese’eja and Harakmbut populations in Tambopata and their deserved rights to have a say in how the land, their ancestral homeland, is allocated regarding both extractive and conservation groups in this zoning process. At Rainforest Expeditions, we have a past of working with these populations in order to uplift indigenous groups and show the potential of a sustainable Tambopata. (Stakeholders-Oscar Perez). Rainforest Expeditions views Ramon Mishaja and the residents of Infierno Territory to be one of their foremost allies, which will further be examined later in our argument. To start, the environmental benefits of allocating portions of this area to tourism, alongside indigenous territories, restoration, wildlands, and areas under strict protection are 1 profound. Morally, tourism allows the rainforest to stay preserved and besides the economic benefits of the practice, allows other Peruvians and tourists to experience Tambopata. Research has shown that ecotourism alongside community relations, like what we practice at Rainforest Expeditions, is the most effective type of conservation to prevent deforestation (Vuoehelainen, 2012). In Tambopata, deforestation is a concern of conservationists and locals alike, and tourism can lead to a decrease in the rate at which it occurs. Tourism also has a link to decreasing mining and other extractive practices. When our tourists are viewing Tambopata, they find mining activities (which are illegal in the visited regions) difficult to watch in the rainforest, which besides the clear action of notifying authorities about the activity, can also lead the tourists to be outspoken about the extraction they saw and advocate for further conservation measures in Tambopata and even in Peru. We know that a focus on indirect approaches to conservation like educating out visitors and community-based actions can lead to increased conservation for Tambopata (Wardle, 2018). Moving forward with Proposal 1 for the region, Tambopata would move towards a sustainable, long-term, economic investment in tourism. Allocating the land proposed to tourism shown in Proposal 1 would lead to massive economic benefits for indigenous and local populations in Tambopata. Research has shown that tourism can provide an “enormous” financial incentive against habitat loss and exploitation of natural resources (Kirkby, 2010). The same research has shown that in Tambopata specifically, growth within the eco-tourism sector has been the first (in a developing country) to compare with equivalent measures for other alternative uses for the region (Kirkby, 2010). When tourists visit Tambopata, they are interested in immersive experiences (Kirkby, 2011), which incentives not only conservation to occur, but including the Ese’eja and Harakmbut populations in cultural tourism, only increasing the 2 economic benefits that will occur. Tourism is the most economically beneficial choice for Tambopata, the most sustainable, and offers opportunities for the indigenous and local populations to experience different employment opportunities in the region. The community benefits to tourism are not limited to only an increase of employment opportunities in the region, research has found that tourism in communities like ours can: sustain rural livelihoods, create new developments, renew a cultural understanding and pride, empower local populations, and protect biodiversity (Stronza, 2008). When local communities and indigenous populations receive “sufficient” benefits from tourism and conservation enterprises (which we strive to do at Rainforest Expeditions), then those populations will work to counter both internal and external threats to that biodiversity (Stronza, 2008). With these community benefits in mind, we look to work with Indigenous Ese’eja community members, Ramon Mishaja, and the Territory of Infierno. Rainforest Expeditions has a partnership with the Ese’eja community and co-operates Posada Amazonas eco-tourist lodge. This partnership has received many international awards for its partnership of co-ownership with the Ese’eja. We base this partnership on common values and ideas for Tambopata, ideas that would continue best with Proposal 1. This proposal allows not only for the most land usage for tourism but also the most net gain of land for further Ese'eja and Harakmbut territories. We acknowledge some indigenous interest in moving towards extractive endeavors, similar to Kotzimba, however, with illegal extraction continuing in Tambopata we remind the Ese’eja that these illegal activities can invade indigenous territories and even lead to violence. Outcomes that Rainforest Expeditions would never advocate for and have shown in our partnership to be advocates and allies of indigenous populations in Tambopata. Together, Rainforest Expeditions, 3 Ramon Mishaja, and the Ese’eja Territory of Infierno must advocate for Proposal 1 for the betterment of the region, and the benefit of the indigenous populations. A potential advocate against Proposal 1 in our zoning sessions could be Madera Grand, a prominent Peruvian Logging Company that seeks to log in Tambopata for economic benefit. Madera Grand will advocate for other proposals that allow for more extraction. Which would open up large swaths of Tambopata, including potential Ese’eja/Harakmbut Territories and tourism areas, to direct extractive use and “low-impact” forest use. Throughout our research we have shown tourism can lead to reduced logging, Madera Grand receiving their desired proposal would devastate Rainforest Expeditions and conservation in Tambopata. The consequences of logging for the tourism industry are clear, but logging also has a myriad of other negative effects for Tambopata such as a rise in Malaria in cut areas (Cannon, 2019) and ultimately the removal of what sustains Tambopata’s wildlife, causing irreversible consequences for biodiversity. In conclusion, Rainforest Expeditions backs Proposal 1 and the increase in the tourism sector in Tambopata for three key reasons, environmental reasons, economic benefits, and the local and indigenous community advantages in pursuing the growth of tourism. What proposal the council moves forward with zoning Tambopata will have lasting effects that will either propel the region into a future of sustainable, long-term economic tourism or turn back to extractive industries that will continue to degrade Tambopata and foster illegal extractive industries. In our eyes, there is only one way forward for Tambopata and its people, choosing to move with the future and harness the potential of tourism and sustainable practices. 4