HANDLING OF PROTECTED AREAS

“CANTALAPIEDRA” WILD LIFE SANCTUARY

Cantalapiedra is located near the south western end of the “Machalilla” National Park. It constitutes an important part of the muffling; politically, it belongs to the Puerto Lopez County in the Manabi Province. It is located in the northern creek of the Ayampe River, approximately at 11 km of its moutht to the Pacific Ocean, it encompasses a great portion of the “Cerro Llovido” in the “Chongón Colonche” range of mountains. The Ayampe River is the only permanent river located in the area of the “Machalilla” National Park. Cantalapiedra is a property of approximately 320 hectares, which keeps inside one of the largest native bamboo forests, important extensions of secondary forest with a recovery process of more than 30 years as well as significant areas of primary forest.

As a Natural Reserve of the Alternative Group, Cantalapiedra provides all types of cooperation and collaboration to carry out investigations, studies and management of new organic agriculture techniques, alternative and clean technologies, and all types of actions to improve the knowledge of the area and its importance. It has to be taken into account that in this area there are varieties of birds, animals and plants unique in the world and has some of the weather zones. As far as this is concerned, four investigations have been carried out by different teams of biologists and ornithologists.

Cantalapiedra has been divided into several areas for a better handling: an area for conservation, an area for recovery and an area of intensive utilization. Additionally the reforestation of the area has been carried out, as well as the protection for the conservation of the “Cerro Llovido”, which has a few of the remnants of the primary forest of the south of Manabi and recovery of secondary forests in the transition area.

Cantalapiedra has the most extensive “cañales” of the Ayampe River basin, which are utilized with techniques of sustainable management. Additionally, Amingay carried out in Cantalapiedra the first experience in the massive spreading of “caña guadua”, for the Reforestation Project in Guayas and Manabi, co-sponsored by FOES (FONDO DE CONTRAVALOR ECUATORIANO-SUIZO) and PPD (UNITEDNATIONS SMALL DONATIONS PROGRAM). With this experience and through the Amingay Corporation, hundreds of rural inhabitants have been trained in the recovery of native “cañales” in the Guayas, Pichincha and Manabi Provinces.

OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE “MACHALILLA” NATIONAL PARK

We have permanently supported the “Machalilla” National Park and currently, through the Amingay Corporation, Agro-ecology and Agro-forest programs are being carried out with the participation of the communities, with the purpose to protect the “Machalilla” National Park and to improve the living conditions of its inhabitants. An important component of this project is a proposal to regulate the adequate use of the soils by the communities inside the “Machallilla National Park.

REFORESTATION

From its inception, Alándaluz has taken the initiative of implementing several reforestation strategies of native species from the zone in collaboration with local communities (see ecological contest). In order to attain optimum efficiency in these strategies, Alándaluz has installed several plant nurseries and organized training courses to maximize results.

Alándaluz established the Bamboo and Guadua Cane Experimental Center in order to halt the massive deforestation of these species as well as to provide permanent technical support for every community in the region participating in the reforestation project. With this purpose in mind, Alándaluz has built plant nurseries which implement modern techniques of reforestation of these species.

The use of Guadua cane is important in the region for several reasons. First of all, this plant grows spontaneously all over this zone and its growth helps to stop erosion, maintains and recovers basins, hosts many plants and animals and helps regulate the environment in general.

In Cantalapiedra, we have planted more than fifty thousand native wood trees and we have built a vegetable garden with more than fifty varieties of native fruit trees. Furthermore, in conjunction with the Amingay Corporation, we have set up many plant nurseries with the purpose of reproducing Guadua cane that provides young plants to several zones nationwide.

LANDSCAPING

Worldwide, our country is considered to have the greatest diversity in fauna, flora and types of weather. With this background, and as far as gardening is concerned, we can assure that there does not exist, nor could exist, only one type of gardening. Furthermore, with the combination of the European traditions and the native contributions, there exist both natural and cultural diversities, thus providing for multiple possibilities. As far a s we know, there does not exist a rigid system for the different types of gardening in our country. This is a task with very exciting possibilities.

In the area where our projects started we have a country tradition to create gardens that are a curious and charming mix of vegetables, flowers and medicinal plants.

Taking advantage of the fact that Ecuador is one of the riches countries in growing a large variety of orchids, heliconias”, “bromelias” and several ornamental plants, we have tried to decorate the diverse architectonic objects with gardens which are the ideal complement to harmonize constructions with light spaces and the splendor of our nature.

A curious phenomenon has happened specifically at Hostería Alándaluz and at the Cantalapiedara Wild Life Sanctuary: both are traditionally dry areas which have been converted in true oasis, with a variety of plants of the area, from other regions of the country and the world. This has been possible thanks to the optimization of the irrigation systems and the reutilization of the grease and black waters through the implementation of integral recycling systems. Curiously this has had an echo full of music, color and cheerfulness. From the initial 30-bird species at Alandaluz, we have now forty-five, in 14 years and in Cantalapiedra from two hundred to two hundred and thirty species in 11 years.

As we can see, the gardening mission is not only to impart splendor to the architectonic spaces, but also to welcome the new flora and fauna species which, in turn, gift us with new sensations of light, color and harmony.

ALTERNATIVE EDUCATIONAL CENTER

Two hectares of land have been specifically designated to house the Alternative Educational Center. Upon completion, this center will serve all surrounding communities. In Alándaluz, hundreds of peasant leaders have been trained, local and foreign students, NGO members, municipality employees and other from diverse institutions.

Training programs: in collaboration with institutions, more than 50,000 people have been trained. Training areas include organic agriculture, water and waste recycling, well-adapted technologies, bio-architecture, etc. We are planning to consolidate cooperative agreements, such as existing ones with Eloy Alfaro University in Manta, foreign universities and Bamboo and Guadua Cane Research Center in Colombia. These educational interchanges with other institutions will promote activities as well as provide an exchange of experiences and relevant information beneficial to Alándaluz and other partner projects. Furthermore, the research process itself focuses beyond well adapted technologies to using this information to not only promote, existing local customs, but to recover those that have fallen into disregard.

Alándaluz and the alternative education center´s mission is to focus on recycling systems, energy, environmental cleaning all linked to not only the agricultural process but also architectural design. We have a long trajectory of experimentation-failures and success stories make up the patrimony of knowledge left to the local communities and institutions that are now striving to evolve towards attaining viable sustainable development strategies. Alándaluz and Cantalapiedra are concrete evidence of this new philosophy and technology in practice.

HOLISTIC HEALTH CENTER

In order to get a successful evolution, the man has analyzed constantly his vital environment, because “He is him and his circumstances, his decisions, his past, present and future”.

When you study widely and deeply the Nature, made of systematically ordered and grouped millions of elements, we find to this man as the maximum exponent in all the Creation, as a diamond: valuable, multi-face, integrated, perfectible.

In the beginning, the man thought that he may fulfill his eagerness for pleasure and comfort, fancily modifying his natural environment; now, wisely, he has understood his duty of interact with nature processes in harmonic and ecological way.

In this context, Holistic Medicine becomes key because it is the most precise and valuable answer to today´s therapeutic crisis. In a quest to find valid answers, holistic medicine gathers the most useful features from all branches of human knowledge and integrates physical, mental, social and spiritual elements in an orthodox, scientific, innovative and empirical way. Therapies use vegetables, aromas, colors, massages, diets, gymnastics, animal and mineral magnetism, acupuncture, neural therapy, homeopathy, native medicine, diverse psycho-therapies combined with traditional orthodox medicine have become not only accepted, but appreciated for its real value. The many positive scientifically confirmed results have led the way for holistic medicinal practices to be accepted on a global ecological level.

Interaction between holistic medicine therapists and open-minded patients has proven to be very satisfied with the results. The main goal is to find a cure: an integral healthy recovery, eliminating the root of the illness which lies in a lack of balance between energy, function and structure. Furthermore, our future projects focus on attaining real spiritual-physical health centers. Among the staff, we have six medical doctors interested in building an Integral Health Center focused on promoting alternative medicine, which will be readily available, to all the people from the zone. At the present time, several doctors already treat people free of charge and also donate medicine to the communities in the area.