The latest buzz in ecotravel doesn’t stop at green building practices and preserves for rainforests. Increasingly, hotels and resorts in areas like Central America are focusing on helping local people achieve economic self-sufficiency in ways that sustain rather than deplete threatened ecosystems. This new trend, which mirrors the global conservation practices of organizations like The Nature Conservancy, recognizes that preservation efforts succeed best when local people aren’t forced to exhaust natural resources for survival.

Honduran lodge strives to touch the land lightly

Pico Bonito Eco Lodge, located on the gorgeous north coast of Honduras, offers visitors the chance to learn about and also protect the rainforest. The 400-acre property is actually inside of Pico Bonito National Park, at the base of the 8,000-foot-high Nombre de Dios – mountains so tall, they touch the clouds. The rainforest, with a towering canopy that reaches heights of 180 feet, is home to a variety of species. Jewel-colored birds like toucans and the lovely cotinga lend color to the emerald depths of the forest, while howler monkeys scream from the trees above jaguars moving silently through the shadows.

The resort’s management is committed to protecting all of this natural beauty, rather than detracting from it. The first step was to begin restoring land that had been cleared for growing cacao, and allow the rainforest to grow lush again. That process included making environmentally sensitive decisions about construction.

Unlike a big hotel complex with a large footprint on the land, this resort’s 22 cabins and restaurant are small buildings set apart from each other. They were built on stilts to minimize impacts on the ground, and also to allow groundwater to flow across the landscape rather than blocking its natural route. Each was situated to take advantage of prevailing breezes. Instead of cutting trees for the exotic woods like mahogany used to craft doors, windowsills, and other decorative details, the owners sought out trees that had been felled by a hurricane.

The old cacao plantation began to return to its natural state: rainforest. The difference was soon evident, according to manager James Adams, who says one of the best illustrations of the change has been a dramatic increase in wildlife sightings. “When we first started to buy little pieces of property to put together this private buffer zone, there certainly was bird diversity, but what you saw was not all that exciting,” he explains. “We knew wildlife was here – ocelots and monkeys and jaguars. But you didn’t see or hear them, all you saw were human tracks and hunting platforms in trees.”

Encouraging local people to value and respect the environment

The health of the local ecosystem started to turn around as Pico Bonito’s influence permeated the community. “First of all, just our presence was a deterrence to hunters and wood-cutters sneaking onto the land,” says Adams. “Add to that the fact that we hire a third or more of our employees from the local village 2.4 kilometers away.” Those employees already had a connection to this landscape; the rest of the staff is Honduran as well.

How does that help? Those 65 employees experience the value of the wildlife whenever they lead guests out to see them. “They get the connection that all this great natural beauty is much more valuable and important kept intact for the long-term,” says Adams. As members of the local community come to understand that cutting a tree for firewood or killing game takes away the value of the park and buffer areas, they, too, become conservation-minded. The eco-resort also invites children from local schools to tour their butterfly farm, serpentarium, and iguana exhibit to learn about specific species and why they are important.

Alexandra Lehmann, who traveled to Honduras from her home in Vermont, was struck by how the buildings fit into the landscape. But she says she was most taken with the guides, all locals with an intimate knowledge of the rainforest handed down from previous generations and supplemented by in-depth training. “The guides are very well versed in the flora and fauna. They have an enormous sense of pride in sharing the beauty of their country, and found their enthusiasm very impressive,” she says.