Yasuni-ITT Project

http://yasuni-itt.gob.ec/blog/2010/12/01/ecuadors-amazon-drilling-pledge-still-to-take-shape/ is the link I found about the Yasuni-ITT project proposed by the Ecuadorian government and accepted by the United Nations Development Programme. President Rafael Correa of Ecuador proposed leaving the area of the Yasuni National Park free from oil drilling in exchange for $3.6 billion from national and international donors. This amount is calculated to be half of the total profits the government would be making if it drilled in this area.  So far countries such as Chile and Spain had provided the Ecuadorian government with $100,000 and $1.3 million, respectively. Consideration for this plan also came from the indigenous communities that live in this area of which two remain in isolation, the Tagaeri and Taromenane Nations. For these communities, conservation is essential to their welfare, as a native explains, “For us indigenous people who work in conservation, drilling is one of those projects that would destroy nature”. This project has two main objectives; develop ecotourism in this area and to discontinue oil drilling that destroys the biodiversity of the region. 


When this project was first proposed in 2008, it was an innovative manner of dealing with oil extraction in this area of the Amazon that has suffered a lot of negative environmental impacts from  international companies and the lack of interest from the national government. However the government is now more than ever committed with conservation. The Ministry of Tourism has developed an enormous campaign stressing the importance of visiting natural sites throughout the country, which has also launched a huge campaign of investing in ecotourism. 


Personally from my visits to this country, I do see the interest of citizens to visit these sites, they usually opt for eco-friendly cabins in the Amazon, the highlands, or on the beaches. I do see a success in this type of tourism because it is not only bringing back a greater connection of citizens to nature but it is also raising the income for the communities that sell their services and goods in these areas. I do not think that ecotourism is replicable in all areas, there are a lot of factors that should be taken in consideration. For example, are the citizens of the country concerned with the state of nature, and is the marketing of ecotourism emphasizing important benefits that a citizen can gain from visiting these sites, among many other factors. I do see hope by these types of initiatives, especially when I see a countries adhering to these types of commitments of conserving the environment, at a time where the international community has been largely criticized for their lack of response.