EcoTourism Supports Community
Ecotourism is about uniting conservation, communities, and sustainable travel.
And we take that to heart.
We purchase locally, whenever we can. We partner with local craftspeople, farmers, fishermen, and service providers in and around Golfito
We partner with and honor the Boruca community, one of the region’s indigenous communities.
We partner with area NGOs that restore and protect the environment, such as Osa Conservation, and Osa Ecology.
Most of our employees grew up in Golfito or have lived here for many years.
Coto 47 - Photo by Denise Johnson
The Coto 47 project - Preserving habitat while preserving livelihoods
Coto 47 is an important wetland located in Costa Rica’s southern zone that is under ecological stress. It attracts thousands of native and migratory birds but part of it is farmland, and fertilizers and pesticides are degrading what is left of the wetland.
A few people have started an initiative that will engage the farmers and the community, local government officials, environmental officials, and NGOs to see what we can do to protect the wetland without impacting the livelihood of the local community.
Ideas include helping the farmers to implement organic and sustainable farming practices, and creating naturalist jobs within the local community, so that birders and other eco-tourists can visit and learn about the area’s biodiversity.
This initiative is in its very early stages and things here take a long time. But we are working to connect passionate activists with local government officials to effect a positive change for all involved.
Meeting with the Mayor of Golfito
We had the honor and pleasure to meet with Freiner Lara, the Mayor of Golfito. His background and dedication to enhancing the lives of those most in need are admirable and inspirational.
Golfito's economy has never fully recovered from United Fruit's withdrawal 40 years ago. Discussing his priorities, we were excited to learn his plans for growth. And how Cielo Lodge may be able to work in cooperation with the municipality to enable him to achieve his goals.
One of his initiatives is to improve the local roads of Golfito, including the Tower Road that leads to Cielo Lodge.
Catalina Torres, our General Manager and Freiner Lara, Mayor of Golfito
We also met with Costa Rica’s Minister of Tourism
We also had the opportunity to meet with Gustavo Segura, Costa Rica’s Minister of Tourism. His passion is Regenerative Tourism - the idea of regenerating degraded environmental areas and turning them into projects for sustainable tourism. Working conventional farms that convert into organic farms and allow tourists to visit and even stay is one idea. And of course eco-lodges that build on logged land and regrow their rainforest is another idea.
Purchasing & Partnering Locally
We could not have completed our project or execute our continuing operations without the help of innumerable local people and small businesses. Here is just a small sampling - the list is really quite long.
Andres, our mechanic
Andres is our fleet mechanic and he also maintains our diesel generator. We don’t have photos of his face yet, because he’s only been captured doing what he does best: saving the day.
Oldemar - boat captain extraordinaire
Oldemar’s family history goes back to Golfito’s. He and his extended family have all earned their living on the waters of the Gulfo Dulce and the mangroves. He’s an expert at finding animals – birds, mammals, reptiles, wherever they are. His knowledge of the waterways ensures our guests will see what is out there, whether it be dolphins, whales, sea turtles or rays.
Jonny lives in a neighboring town where his humble woodworking shop produces high quality hardwood furniture. His expert designs grace all of Cielo Lodge’s outdoor seating areas. And his shop produced the headboards in all of the suites, and night tables, dressers, and the bar and dining room tables. We appreciate his attention to detail, and how he incorporated the purpleheart from our property into his designs.
Jonny - an extremely talented woodworker
Many of our employees grew up in or near Golfito
About the Boruca Community
Marina is Barucan textile weaver. Here she is making dyes from plants.
Boruca is an indigenous tribe in South-Pacific Costa Rica, located among the Talamanca Mountains 20 km from Panama. The Boruca tribe is estimated to have around 2,000 members and is located on an indigenous reserve, where about 140 km² of land are protected for their use. According to Costa Rican law, tribes on the reservation land, like Boruca, have the right to self-governance.
Cielo Lodge has partnered with the artists and textile weavers among the Borucan community, incorporating their unique artisanry into our décor and within our bar and dining room.
We also offer an organized tour of the community, where guests can visit the artists’ workshops, and experience firsthand how vibrant and special this indigenous community is.
Markos, a Barucan artist, has made many of the masks that we display at Cielo Lodge
We are committed to supporting local NGOS who do great environmental work
Eleanor Flatt - a member of the Osa Conservation team, uploading audio files for the Camera Trap project
Osa Conservation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the globally significant biodiversity of the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Cielo Lodge proudly partners with this group, having participated in wild life and habitat projects such as the Osa Camera Trap Project .
Phoebe Edge - with a rescued Hawksbill Turtle
Osa Ecology was founded by Phoebe Edge and her husband Pipi. Their noble mission is to do whatever possible to protect the region’s biome – using strategy to derive measurable results. One of their main focuses is on rescuing sea turtles.