EXPLORE HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE & THE VALDIVIAN COASTAL RESERVE MODELS FOR PRIVATE LAND CONSERVATION

Transcription

1 EXPLORE HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE & THE VALDIVIAN COASTAL RESERVE MODELS FOR PRIVATE LAND CONSERVATION

2 EXPLORE The Valdivian Temperate RAINFOREST Travel to Chile for a seven day seminar hosted by The Aspen Institute and The Nature Conservancy. CONTENTS < < CONSERVATION IN CHILE < < ABOUT THE NATURE CONSERVANCY < < ABOUT THE ASPEN INSTITUTE S ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT PROGRAM < < ASPEN SEMINAR FORMAT < < PROPOSED ITINERARY < < ESTIMATED COST

3 CONSERVATION IN CHILE Chile s Valdivian Coastal Range, like Chile itself, is long and narrow: a rugged strip of green mountains running parallel between the snowy wall of the Andes and the southern coast of the Pacific. During the last Ice Age, this geography created a refuge that enabled an extraordinary array of unusual plants and animals to flourish. The range is filled with superlatives smallest deer, third-largest woodpecker, oldest marsupial, secondlongest-lived tree species. And all of these rarities live in the world s second-largest temperate rainforest. The Nature Conservancy began working with partners in Chile in Despite an extensive park system, many of Chile s prized species and richest diversity of plants and animals lay beyond park boundaries often on private lands. That realization led the Conservancy to launch an unprecedented effort to protect the region s biodiversity by working with private landowners. Purchased by the Conservancy in 2003, the 150,000-acre Valdivian Coastal Reserve in southern Chile has become a testing ground for managing large landscapes for conservation. The Conservancy works closely with people and businesses in neighboring fishing villages and indigenous communities to maintain traditional land uses and encourages sustainable local economic development as part of the Reserve s overall conservation strategy. ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT PROGRAM The Aspen Institute s Energy and Environment Program provides a neutral forum for constructive dialogue on complex issues and challenges specific to energy and the environment. The Institute aspires to increase knowledge, broaden perspectives and enhance the ability of leaders to solve problems. The Institute has significant experience leading seminars on nature and society in remote locations. Now it is partnering with the Conservancy for an extraordinary opportunity to explore the meaning and challenge of conservation in the 21st century in the rare forest ecosystem of Chile through a special Aspen Institute seminar-based expedition. The Aspen Institute and The Nature Conservancy invite you to travel with them to this remote part of the world so that you can fully experience the wonder of the area, while learning from and sharing ideas with other participants.

4 ASPEN INSTITUTE SEMINAR This experiential seminar will introduce participants to the debates and changes surrounding conservation and will include readings from the Energy and Environment Program s Nature and Society Seminar. Our goal is to offer a platform for global thinkers and leaders to explore conservation and human well-being in the context of Chile s rich natural resources. Participants will share their ideas about how economic development and natural resource protection is interconnected and discuss past successes and ongoing obstacles to conservation. Seminar participants also will learn about the Conservancy s work with people and businesses in neighboring fishing villages and indigenous communities and what we are learning from them. The Conservancy s onthe-ground approach to maintaining traditional land uses is encouraging local economic development, such as sustainable beekeeping, natural herbal tea production, fishing, and sustainable tree harvesting. We are providing support for the local economy through a Conservancy partnership with the World Wildlife Fund and the United Nations Development Program. With guidance from The Nature Conservancy s Lead Scientist M. Sanjayan, and Aspen Institute s Executive Vice President of Policy and Public Programs Elliot Gerson, seminar leader David Monsma will facilitate a dialogue that supports three essential objectives: < < first, to convene a diverse group of thoughtful leaders in rigorous roundtable discussions; < < second, to explore innovative ideas across time from ancient to present day to gain insights for addressing fundamental issues in our society; and < < third, to translate ideas into action suitable to the conservation challenges of our age. from thought to action, from success to significance.

5 PROPOSED ITINERARY SATURDAY, MARCH 1 U.S. TO SANTIAGO, CHILE Depart on your overnight flight to Santiago Chile. Overnight: Aloft DAY 1: SUNDAY, MARCH 2 ARRIVE IN SANTIAGO Upon arrival at Santiago International Airport (SCL), you will be met by your local guide Jorge Moller from Darwin Trails, and transferred to your hotel. After settling in, we will take a brief city tour, followed by lunch. Santiago lies in one of the most spectacular settings of any city in the world. Encircled by the snowcapped Andean peaks to the east and a smaller coastal range to the west, this metropolitan city is a mix of modern architecture, suburban parks and a charming old town district, interspersed with excellent museums and restaurants. Our tour will highlight some of the city s more notable landmarks, such as the museum La Chascona, which Nobel Prize winning poet, diplomat and politician Pablo Neruda built as a secret hideaway for his mistress Matilde Urrutia. We will stop for lunch at Meson Nerudiano before returning to the hotel to relax or explore on your own. This evening we will have a welcome dinner with the Conservancy s Chile Program Staff and members of the Chile Trustee Advisory Council. Overnight: Hotel Plaza El Bosque, Ebro. DAY 2: MONDAY, MARCH 3 SANTIAGO TO HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE After breakfast and check-out, we will transfer to the airport for a short flight to Temuco. Upon arrival, we will be met by a driver and guide and driven to the Huilo Huilo Biological Reserve (2.75 hours). Huilo-Huilo Biological Reserve (Pronounced: WHEEL-oh-WHEEL-oh) is a private, for-profit reserve and ecotourism project in southern Chile, located in the temperate rainforest. Created in 1999, the reserve includes 232 square miles of native forest and is dedicated to wildlife conservation, sustainability and tourism. It is an important partner to the Conservancy s private lands initiative and exemplary of the way landowners in Chile are embracing the creation of private protected areas. Through partnerships, such as this one with the Conservancy, landowners are creating conditions and gaining the technical knowledge they need to support a private lands conservation movement across Chile. We will check into the Nawelpi Lodge and explore our surroundings before cocktails and dinner. With 81 species of birds, an array of mammals, including the pudú deer, and the Monito del Monte, a relative of the Australian marsupial family, there is no shortage of wildlife at Huilo Huilo. Enjoy the beauty of the Fuy River, which flows through a volcanic canyon and ends dramatically in the Huilo Huilo Falls. Located on the north side of the Fuy River, Nawelpi Lodge is surrounded by beautiful native forest that was designated a biosphere reserve by Unesco in The lodge has 12 completely private rooms (6 modules of 2 rooms each). Each two-room module has a private patio with a river view, a lounge with a fireplace, a Jacuzzi in the bathroom, a digital safe-deposit box, and other amenities. Overnight: Nawelpi Lodge, Huilo Huilo Reserve

6 DAYS 3-4: TUESDAY/ WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4 & 5 HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE During the next two days, we will experience a mix of seminar readings and discussions and outdoor activities. More than 40 possible excursions include trekking, horseback riding, mountain biking, vehicle excursions, kayaking, sailing, mountain trips, fly fishing and bathing at the hot springs. Excursions are provided by local guides from the community and are an example of conservation-minded, responsible tourism that benefits the local economy. Overnight: Nawelpi Lodge DAY 5: THURSDAY, MARCH 6 HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE/VALDIVIA After a final morning in Huilo Huilo, we will meet for lunch and a seminar session. At the end of the session, we will check out and depart for the town of Valdivia, which is near the Valdivian Coastal Reserve. In Valdivia, we will check into the Dreams Hotel and dine together at a nearby restaurant, known for its fresh seafood. Overnight: Dreams Hotel, Valdivia DAY 6: FRIDAY, MARCH 7 THE CONSERVANCY S VALDIVIAN COASTAL RESERVE The Valdivian Coastal Reserve is part of an ancient temperate rainforest rising from Chile s southern coastline. This vast stretch of coastal forest is a remnant of thousands of years past, when it was connected to the forests of New Zealand and Australia. In fact, some species are more closely related to species from those distant lands than from the Americas. During the last Ice Age, this coastal range served as a freeze-free refuge for a multitude of species found nowhere else on Earth. Today, the Conservancy is focused on protecting and restoring the native forests of Valdivia. In one key reforestation pilot project, the Conservancy is working to restore nearly 9,000 acres to native forest that are currently covered in eucalyptus trees, a non-native species planted by forestry companies before the reserve was established in (CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE)

7 DAY 6: FRIDAY, MARCH 7...CONTINUED THE CONSERVANCY S VALDIVIAN COASTAL RESERVE Nearly half of the Valdivian Coast s woody plants are found nowhere else on Earth. And that s just the plants. The region s riverbanks, rocky coasts and dense understory are home to many remarkable animals puma, river otters, and other rare and unique creatures, from the 18- inch Magellanic woodpecker, one of the world s largest, to the kodkod, one of the world s smallest wild cats. By the 1990s, nearly half of the Valdivian Coastal Range had been lost to logging and development, and much of the rest was under threat of a planned coastal highway. Today, the Valdivian Coastal Reserve is a thriving model of private land and marine conservation. The innovative conservation model implemented by the Reserve provides opportunities to the local community by hiring and training residents to manage and staff the property. The model also helps them participate in governmentsponsored development initiatives. Our visit will showcase initiatives that The Nature Conservancy has developed here with partners, universities and other NGO s, all working toward the common goal of managing large landscapes for plant and animal conservation and for conservation-friendly development. A 20-minute drive from Valdivia is the small seaport town of Niebla. Here we will transfer by ferry across Corral harbor and overland to the Reserve s headquarters, where we will begin our visit. The Reserve s park rangers will tell us about their work here, such as supporting scientific research and working alongside the community. The rangers will also give us a history of the Reserve and the impact it has had in the lives of local people, including many of the Reserve staff. We will drive to the northern edge of the Reserve to begin our tour. Five rivers flow completely within the borders of the Reserve, and where one of them the Colún River meets the Pacific Ocean, we will have a spectacular view from an observation deck of its twin freshwater lakes. Deeper in the Reserve, we will visit the 13,000 acres of forest land that were cleared of native vegetation by the timber company that previously owned the property. At the Sendero Alerces hiking trail, we will take a short, guided walk through groves of olivillo and alerce trees and see a variety of other plant species that grow in the temperate coastal rainforests of Valdivia. After a short rest, we will go by vehicle to the Colún River for lunch. Hiking and horseback riding will be available for those who would like to explore the caves and dense vegetation surrounding Colún beach before we head back to our hotel in Valdivia for our final night. Overnight: Dreams Hotel, Valdivia

8 DAY 7, SATURDAY, MARCH 8 VALDIVIA/TEMUCO/SANTIAGO After breakfast, we will drive to Temuco for our flight to Santiago. Day rooms will be available to us near the Santiago airport before we transfer to the Santiago International Airport for our return flights home that evening. DAY 8: SUNDAY, MARCH 9 ARRIVE IN U.S. ESTIMATED COST $7,500 per person/double occupancy Single Supplement: $1,200 What s Included: < < Airport transfers < < Accommodations < < Meals (except those in transit from the U.S.) < < Ground and domestic air transportation < < Excursions (some excursions at Huilo Huilo may be extra) What s Not Included: < < International Airfare < < Gratuities < < Items or services of a personal nature Photo Credits: Cover: Valdivian Coastal Reserve, Chile Nick Hall; Page 1: Valdivian Coastal Reserve, Chile Nick Hall; Stock graphic, Creative Common License; Page 2: Stock photo, Creative Common License; Page 3: Colun Beach, Chile Nick Hall; Page 4: Sea Lions, Chile Nick Hall; Helecho Enano (Dwarf Fern), Chile Erika Nortemann; Alerce Coastal National Park, Chile Nick Hall; Chile Gunnera w/ tree frog, Chile Mark Godfrey; Page 5: Stock graphic, Creative Common License; Page 6: Old Growth, Valdivian Coastal Reserve Tina Buijis EXPLORE The Valdivian Temperate RAINFOREST