Will tourism save or destroy the most biodiverse place on Earth?

A documentary film

By: Eytan Elterman

The balance between economic development and ecological protection when it comes to tourism can be a controversial one. We at Bana want to highlight the amazing work our sustainable tourism colleagues are doing around the globe.  Eytan Elterman and Marco Bollinger created a beautiful documentary film about the complexities of  tourism development in Costa Rica. Learn the backstory of producing the film  as told by Eytan, and watch the documentary for free:

“In deciding to produce the documentary film 2.5% - The Osa Peninsula I wanted to help conserve the world’s most biologically intense place. 

The tropical rainforest of Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula contains 2.5% of the world’s biodiversity on less than one millionth of the planet’s surface. Its incredible natural beauty has caught the eye of the tourism industry and the planned construction of an international airport threatens to transform the region forever. It has one paved road and no chain hotels, allowing for the region’s natural beauty to really shine. Spanning more than five years, the film weaves together voices from Osa residents, local leaders and conservation experts as they attempt to build a tourism industry that balances environmental protection with the needs of local communities.

Arriving in the Osa for the first time in 2011, my co-director Marco and I thought three weeks would be sufficient to produce a short 10-15 minute documentary. But we soon realized that the local voices were many, they wanted to be heard, and the basic narrative of just trying to stop the airport from being built was not necessarily the answer. Maybe there was a more balanced approach. We needed to dig further. 

So we came back to California and launched a very improbable crowdunding campaign that had us dancing for 107 hours, dressed like rainforest animals while livestreaming to any and all that wanted to watch. Exhausted and elated, we reached our funding goal, got on the national Costa Rica news (watch the newscast here) and returned to the Osa with a much clearer understanding of our job at hand. 

The goal was to produce a documentary that had a unifying and empowering tone. Something Osa locals could be proud of as well as something that travelers and international viewers could connect with. With that objective in mind we started talking to people in town, attempting to gain a clearer picture of what the plans were for the airport and what people’s thoughts were with respect to it.

One day while walking in Puerto Jimenez (the small town we called home for 6 months) I saw a poster for a rural community tourism conference that was set to start the next day. Knowing very little about community tourism but wanting to learn more, I called the organizers and let them know we’d like to attend. Filming part of the conference and interviewing some of the experts would be a great way to move our documentary forward. They were open to our participation and sure enough a few hours later we rented a car and were on our way to Pérez Zeledón. The conference was the impetus to understanding that community tourism was a powerful solution to conserving the region, and community tourism quickly became the focus of our film. 

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, as little as 5% of the money international travelers spend on trips actually reaches local communities. Instead, money goes to internationally owned hotels and tour operators who send earnings abroad, potentially negatively impacting local environment and culture. Community tourism projects ensure that travel dollars go directly into the hands of local people who are committed to conserving fragile environments, improving life for local communities and preserving cultural traditions. 

Over the course of the next few months my understanding of the community tourism landscape in the Osa grew exponentially. There were more than 50 projects, a new cooperative, and many local associations striving for success. I also grew to understand that a small airport with traveler quotas was probably better than no airport or a large airport. This is the balance the Osa was looking for.

Meeting many of the entrepreneurs leading these efforts was undoubtedly inspiring and eye opening. A few of them became the main characters in the film and lifelong friends. Xinia is a single mother who mines gold for a living. Johnson and his brother Carlos are ex-hunters who now lead wildlife treks on their rainforest property. Xinia, Johnson and Carlos are three of many Osa residents who are creating community tourism projects, opening their homes and land to travelers who want a more personal experience in exploring the nature and culture of the Osa. Many environmental experts see it as a great strategy for conservation and many Osa locals hope it is the future of tourism in the region. But will it succeed? 

Making 2.5% was one of the most incredible experiences of my life, and inspired me to co-launch Lokal Travel, a social enterprise on a mission to change the way the world travels. Lokal helps protect unique places like the Osa by promoting community tourism experiences around the world. These projects give locals in remote communities an opportunity to tap into the growing tourism economy, retain their land, and provide travelers with unforgettable, once in a lifetime experiences.

Since the COVID pandemic hit we’ve made our film free to watch. During the current downturn of physical travel many of us still crave connection to remote parts of the world and many of us dream about the day when we will be able to safely travel again. I hope this film provides some inspiration on that end. There’s also an option to donate, if you feel so inclined. The donation would go towards helping Lokal survive the crisis, and in turn continue working with all our wonderful partners around the world well into the future.