WELCOME back to the Philippines, Hitesh Mehta, the guru on ecolodges and ecotourism planning and development.
An award-winning landscape architect, photographer, professor, professional cricket player, advocate and one of the world’s foremost experts of sustainable tourism, Mehta has traveled the world to showcase the best in authentic ecolodges. He returned to the Philippines for his fourth Ecolodge Design and Planning Workshop, organized by the International School of Sustainable Tourism, in partnership with the Department of Tourism, Department of the Environment and Natural Resources, Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, Philippine Airlines and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.
In an interview by one of the broadsheets in Manila in March 2015, Hitesh recounted how he zealously taught Filipinos the proper process of developing an ecosite. During his first visit to Tagaytay in the 1970s, he was amazed by Taal Volcano’s lake-within-a-lake wonder and instantly fell in love with Tagaytay’s pine-covered ridges, the open fields and cerulean skies. However, when he returned to the area in the 1990s, he saw buildings covering the view, and lodgings that did not blend with the cultural milieu, people walked everywhere, and erosion took place. It was not a great experience. After a lull in tourism development in the early 1990s, as reported by The Ecotourism Society, ecolodges began springing up in different corners of the world as ecotourism became the byword and hot spot in tourism destinations. However, developers had their own interpretation of what ecolodges should be and where they should be located. So, we asked Hitesh to share more about authentic ecolodges:
What is the current definition of ecolodge?
An ecolodge is a 5-, to 75-room low-impact, nature-based financially sustainable accommodation facility that helps protect sensitive neighboring areas; involves and helps local communities; offers tourists an interpretative and interactive participatory experience; provides a spiritual communion with nature and culture; and is planned, designed, constructed and operated in an environmentally and socially sensitive manner. This is the definition I prepared upon the request from the National Geographic in 2004.
What is the relationship between ecolodges and ecotourism?
To answer that question, I must first redefine ecotourism as responsible travel to natural areas that conserve the environment, sustain the well-being of the local people and involve education and interpretation. Since authentic ecolodges are the accommodation component of ecotourism, they can only be located in natural areas and must not be found in an urban location. As a colleague of mine put it appropriately, “an ecolodge cannot exist between a Marriott, and a Sheraton.”
How does one prepare a site for ecolodges?
Before one develops a site for an ecolodge, one needs to conduct and in-depth physical and metaphysical analysis of the chosen site and detailed studies of the location, sizes of native trees and shrubs. During this preparation, one must ensure that all these plants and trees are protected. The smaller trees and shrubs can be carefully taken out, placed in containers and located in a nursery. After construction, these tree can be brought back to the site and re-planted.
What is an authentic ecolodge as against an inn, or a boutique hotel?
The terminologies “inn” and “hotels” are used for accommodation facilities in urban locations. Ecolodges can only be located in natural areas and for them to be authentic, they need to satisfy at least five of the criteria below, three of which must embody the main principles of ecotourism: that of conservation of neighboring lands, benefits to local communities, and interpretation to both local populations and guests:
- Helps in the conservation of the surrounding flora and fauna;
- Contributes to sustainable local community development through educational programs and research;
- Offers interpretive programs to educate both its employees and tourists about the surrounding natural and cultural environments;
- Endeavors to work together with the local community during the planning and design process;
- Fits into its specific physical and cultural contexts through careful attention to form, landscaping and color, as well as the use of vernacular architecture;
- Uses traditional building technology and materials wherever possible, and combines these with their modern counterparts for greater sustainability;
- Has minimal impact on the natural surroundings during construction;
- Uses alternative, sustainable means of water acquisition and reduces water consumption;
- Provides for careful handling and disposal of solid waste;
- Uses eco-friendly sewage treatment systems; and
- Meets its energy needs through passive design and renewable energy sources.
Why build an ecolodge?
One needs to build ecolodges in natural areas to uphold the social and ecological integrity of their given environment, and thereby allow for sustained financial benefits without damaging or destroying the very natural resources on which they depend.
Why do you keep holding workshops on ecolodges?
I conduct the ecolodge workshops as a capacity-building exercise, so that I can share what I have learned over the past 22 years. To follow Mahatma Gandhi’s prophecy, “I want to be the change I want to see in the world,” and these one-of-a-kind workshops are meant to educate, inspire and encourage participants to have a conscientious approach to plan, design, develop and operate authentic ecolodges and, in doing so, contribute to the conservation of our global natural and cultural heritage.
Who benefits when you build an authentic ecolodge?
For one, the local communities will get not only much-needed employment, but they will also benefit through the possible building and support to schools, medical clinics and clean-water facilities, among others. In many places around the world, ecolodges have helped to alleviate local poverty. The local natural environment will also benefit, because they will be protected and kept intact for guests to enjoy.
Please cite three of the most important ecolodges in the world today?
There are so many amazing authentic ecolodges all over the world and because they are in varying geographical (desert, forest, savannah, etc.) locations with each having their own local conditions, it is impossible to compare ecolodges. However, what I did for my book Authentic Ecolodges was to create 12 different themes and then showcased three ecolodges that best fit the theme.
Which tourism property in the Philippines would be included in your next book? When will that be available to the public?
I am (assisted by my wife) currently working on the second volume of Authentic Ecolodges, and we have already researched and visited 10 ecolodges, one of them being Miniloc Lodge in Palawan. Considering both our busy work schedules, we do not see the book getting published until late-2018.
From September 19 to 23, Metah concluded the fifth Ecolodge Design and Planning Workshop at the International School of Sustainable Tourism Campus in Subic Bay Freeport Zone. The site analysis for the charette was Roosevelt National Park in Dinalupihan, Bataan. All of the participants underwent the meta-analysis (which they fondly dubbed as “Mehta-analysis”), which is a major component in planning ecolodges. The participants learned the importance of taking time and effort in site analysis, and sustainable designs. A common sentiment in the workshop was the hope that the government would provide incentives to encourage developers to build ecolodges in the countryside.
Dr. Mina T. Gabor was the founder and president of the Center for International Trade Exhibitions and Missions Inc. (Citem) of the Department of Trade and Industry, and the secretary of the Department of Tourism from 1996 to 1998. She continues to work on her passion of promoting the Philippines through trade and tourism as the president of the International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST), as founder and president of the Philippine Small and Medium Business Development Foundation Inc. (PHILSMED), and the president of the Automobile Association of the Philippines Travel Agency. She is currently a member of the Board at the De La Salle-College ot Saint Benilde, and Chair Emeritus of the International Women’s Forum. For any feedback, please contact this writer at minagabor2010@gmail.com.